Causes And Effects
by coldlove
Summary: In which Draco Malfoy reveals a bit of himself to Hermione Granger, and vice versa. Complete! And Rated M. Written prior to HBP. Check out the sequel entitled Similar Causes And Effects.
1. The Return to Hogwarts

**Important Author's Note**: So yes, this is the story that was formerly called "Causes and Effects of Shagging". Some of you have already read the first twenty or so chapters, but I've got a little surprise for you. It's all been revised. Yes, that's right, some significant changes have been made and there's more story. I personally would suggest rereading it, even if you only skim the chapters. I wouldn't want you guys to be confused by the time you reach chapter twenty-three…

So let me explain. The story was taken down (I can't be sure exactly how it all came about, but I've got my suspicions…) after I received an email from the fanfiction administrators questioning the G rated-ness of the title. Hmm, I thought, I'll just have to change it, no problem with that. I still have all of your reviews in my mailbox, all 378 of them, so don't fear, I still remember everything you guys have said.

If you're new to this story, then keep reading. If you're not then don't bother reading the introduction again. Just skip past the next section, and get on with the story!

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Hello everyone, this is **coldlove**...I'm ashamed to say it, but this is my first fanfiction story, although I've been an active reader for about two years now. (And if you are somehow interested in the person behind the story, check out my profile.) There isn't really much for me to say besides read and enjoy.

However, there are a few mandatory things I have to put in here before the story begins. I think I might need a disclaimer. So...

**Disclaimer: **All characters in this story belong to J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series. I'm not even particularly attached to any of them anyway, so I won't take credit when it belongs somewhere else. This goes for all subsequent chapters too...

Ah yes; reviews. Reviews make my day, literally. I sit and read them over and over, then think about them every night before I go to sleep. :) Just kidding, but it's nice to get them all the same…

So, now that all that boring stuff is over, let's get on with the story...

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**The Return to Hogwarts**

It was 7:30 in the morning of September 1. Hermione Granger awoke from a series of pleasant dreams and reluctantly rolled out of bed. In order for her day to be productive in any way she would first need a shower, and so she headed to the bathroom seconds after her feet touched the carpeted floor of her bedroom. Her thoughts wandered back to the subject of her dreams, and where her day would eventually lead her—Hogwarts. Ever since she'd received the news that she was to be the newest Head Girl, her mind and thoughts—and apparently her dreams too—were filled with the idea of it. She couldn't say that it had been much of a surprise. Her closest friends, scattered acquaintances, and even her worst enemies had all been surer of her intelligence than she had been herself. Harry and Ron and Ginny constantly praised Hermione for 'how bloody smart' she always was and had been. And now here was the proof. So while Hermione hadn't always been convinced, now she could no longer deny it.

And with the position of Head Girl, she felt that she could finally do things. It gave her power, and, she promised herself, respect. The students would listen, the teachers would listen, and after her Hogwarts career had ended, she was guaranteed an important role in the wizarding world. The year would be a blast, and with her three closest friends at her side, nothing could go wrong.

And so the one hitch in the plan was, of course, Draco Malfoy. Someone he had managed to snatch the Head Boy position for himself. Hermione had never paid particular attention to him besides in reply to his snide comments, and she'd thrown for a loop by the idea that maybe he wasn't the complete idiot she'd always thought him. But, no matter how intelligent he might turn out to be, Hermione was not looking forward to a year of forced interaction with him. He had managed, in a surprisingly small number of instances, to become one of the most infuriatingly annoying people she'd ever met in her life. And to know that it would only get worse…

"Hermione, are you coming down?"

"Yeah, I'll be out in a second," she called out to her mother. She ended her shower and stepped back into her room to decide what she would wear. After all, it was the first day of her last year at Hogwarts, so she might as well look good. She slipped on a red shirt (the color had grown on her after so many years in Gryffindor), her favorite pair of jeans, and black boots, then prepared to make her way downstairs.

"—last year in that school and what are we going to do?"

Hermione stopped at the sound of her mother's voice in conversation with her father's. She stood at the bottom of the staircase and waited to hear the rest of what her parents were apparently discussing—her.

"Well, she certainly has to attend a university next year," her father said matter-of-factly.

"And how is that going to happen? No school is going to accept a diploma from a wizarding school. They'll think it's a joke."

"Problem solved, then," Hermione said as she walked into the kitchen. "I'll just stay in the wizarding world."

Her parents were sitting at the kitchen counter having breakfast and looked up at the sound of her voice, then each other.

"Honey," her mother began, "you can't stay in the wizarding world."

"Why not!"

"You can't live there and here at the same time."

"I know, mum. I'm going to come back and visit."

"That's what you say," her father interjected as he placed his newspaper down on the counter.

"You know whenever you have a break you never really want to come home," her mother said.

"What are you talking about? I come home every holiday, don't I?"

"Yes, but do you really want to?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. Her parents just couldn't restrain themselves from worrying about her presence in the magical world. She sat down on a stool and picked up a piece of toast, determined to ignore her parents for the rest of the meal. The kitchen was silent until her mother said finally spoke.

"We should probably leave at 8:00 if you don't want to miss the train."

"I know, mum," Hermione said in a drone. She got up and went into the living room where her trunks were waiting. Her father quickly packed them as she and her mother got into the car.

Ten minutes into the ride her mother finally spoke. "So…Hermione, you've got some head position at your school, right? The highest for a student?"

"Yeah, I'm the Head Girl," Hermione replied but said no more.

"Well, honey, you know I'm proud of you."

"Though, it's not really much of a surprise, is it?" her father said. "You were always good at whatever you did."

"Always," her mother agreed. "Does that mean there's a Head Boy too?"

"Yeah, there's a Head Boy," Hermione said, and her thoughts immediately slipped back to their earlier subject. She was still in relative shock of Malfoy's attainment of the position. Really, it was utterly unexpected. If not for the fact that he didn't grunt like the idiots that constantly surrounded him, she would've thought it was one big joke.

An image of his face came to mind and a shiver went down her spine. Though she put up a front whenever he harassed her or her friends, inside, Hermione was still a little scared of him. He was unrestrained in his cruelty to her, and took as many chances as possible to call her mudblood and insult her background. And he was just as haughty and cruel to others. He walked the halls of the school as if he owned Hogwarts and everybody in it.

And his expression. What had made her shiver not two seconds before was the sheer hatred with which he always regarded her, especially since after a particularly biting, and accurate, remark she'd made to him the year before.

She'd been on her way to Potions with Harry and Ron when Malfoy had slammed past her, nearly throwing her off-balance and scattering her books all over the floor.

"Watch where you're going, mudblood," he'd said as he continued on down the corridor without breaking his stride.

Maybe it had just been that particular day, but it was too much for Hermione to bear. She'd sped up and placed herself suddenly in front of him, and he'd looked down and stopped.

"You should know, Malfoy, that for the life of me I cannot figure out why you're such a disgusting person. I know you can't help that everyone in your family is evil, but those expectations don't serve as an excuse for your immature, prick-like manners."

Hermione had glared at him with positive fury in her eyes as she said these words. Malfoy had seemed to be at a loss for words for a moment and completely surprised at her exclamation. But he'd recovered from the shock quickly enough and had glared back at her with a new and even more threatening expression of hate. Harry and Ron seemed to sense danger and had pulled Hermione away from Malfoy and their staring match into the relative safety of the Potions classroom.

So now, when he wasn't giving her that particular look of intense hatred, or making fun of Harry and Ron, his expression was as smooth and blank as a piece of paper. Besides the ever-present loathing on his part, she could never tell what exactly was on his mind.

And then there was his track record with the female population of Hogwarts. Rumor had it that he'd bedded at least fifty percent of the girls at the school. Hermione had never thought of Malfoy in that respect because she was so incredibly repulsed by his character. But apparently everyone else thought that he was the hottest thing in existence, and he used that fact to his advantage. As Ginny said, he shagged girls faster than he could count them all. So, with morals like that on top of his detestable personality, how could Malfoy possibly be a person she could stand?

But why was she even thinking about this subject at all? Damn her and her detailed memory; she always seemed to be lapsing into moments of thought about the most arbitrary things and people, even ones like this that gave her no pleasure whatsoever.

"Hermione…Hermione!"

"Yeah?" she replied, coming out of her trance.

"We're here."

Hermione looked through the window up at King's Cross Station and her thoughts flashed over her remaining year at Hogwarts. She couldn't believe that this was the last time she'd ever need to board the train here. But now her parents were beginning to unload the car and she could no longer linger to muse on that subject. She stepped out of the car, took hold of a suitcase in each hand, and followed her parents into the station. All her luggage was loaded onto a giant cart, and Hermione prepared to wheel it away.

Her mother sighed, then gave Hermione a kiss on the cheek.

"We love you honey."

"I love you guys too."

"Good luck. We're proud of you."

"Thanks, mum," Hermione said as she made her way to Platform 9 ¾. Heading straight for the barrier between platforms 9 and 10, she made sure that no one was looking as she pushed her way through and on to the other side.

And there it was; the Hogwarts Express, steaming away as dozens of students made their way back and forth, hugging parents, pushing luggage, and boarding the train.

Hermione smiled as she got her luggage on the train. She stepped back onto the platform to see if she could spot Harry, Ron, and Ginny. No such luck, so she headed to the compartment she usually shared with them.

"Hey guys!" she said as she saw all three already sitting down inside.

"Hermione!" Ron exclaimed and rose to crush her in a hug. "You look different," he said as he pulled away. "Did you grow an inch or something?"

"Ha ha, very funny, but yes," she said in response. "Though it's easy for you joke about height, isn't it? And you too, Harry," Hermione said as he walked over.

The Boy Who Lived grinned happily and enveloped her in a long hug. "Well, I try."

"Hermione, I don't know what it is," Ginny said as they embraced, "but you look positively radiant."

Hermione laughed. "What are you talking about?" she asked as Ginny pulled her to sit down.

"I told you Hermione, you changed," Ron said. "You grew…"

"Yeah, you're glowing," Ginny said ignoring him. "You look more…confident or something. And it suits you."

Hermione inwardly smiled at Ginny's unexpected comment; perhaps her Head position was already having its effects.

"I'm so glad you made Head Girl," the younger Weasley continued, then began thinking aloud about how much fun she anticipated that year.

Hermione had told her, and Harry and Ron of course, almost as soon as she'd received the letter. She'd also told them that Malfoy was the Head Boy—and what unwelcome news that was. Even though their entire correspondence had been through owl post, Hermione could still imagine Ron's face reddening as he read the letter and processed the fact that Malfoy had actually gotten the position.

Hermione came back to the moment and checked her watch. 9:04. And she had a rendezvous with Malfoy and Professor McGonagall at 9:10. "Guys, I've got a meeting just about now." She stood up to leave. "I'll see you later."

"With Malfoy?" Harry asked.

"He is the other Head…"

"I swear…"Ron said, shaking his head.

"Don't know how he managed that," Harry said.

"Probably paid for by his father. Such a git."

"You know guys," Hermione began even though she knew it would be in his defense, "he's not a complete idiot. It might be a surprise, but after my marks, his are the best in our year."

"Still doesn't deserve it."

Hermione laughed at the sour expression on Ron's face. "I'll be back as soon as I can," she said, then left, making her way towards the Heads' compartment.


	2. A Similar Point of View

**A Similar Point of View**

At 7:30 that same day, Draco was already up and dressed. He wasn't exactly psyched to be returning to school, but at least it was a change from the mansion.

"Come downstairs," his father's voice boomed from below. "We must leave by 8:00 if you are to be on time."

_I know that, you idiot,_ Draco thought. He went down the stairs anyway.

"Must you wear those ridiculous clothes?" Lucius asked as Draco appeared at the table. Lucius didn't like Draco's fashion sense very much, but Draco certainly did. In fact, Draco liked a lot of muggle things. For instance, the watch he was wearing, which he made sure to cover with his sleeve before his father noticed it. And he had picked out one of his favorite muggle outfits that morning.

"I think it's…stylish," Draco's mother said.

"I don't," Lucius spat. "Still, it matches. Sit down and eat."

Draco ignored him and ordered a glass of juice. Of course he matched, perfectly. The tie was the exact same fabric and color as his green shirt, and matched his slacks, which were a slightly darker shade. Quite a contrast to his white-blond hair and eyes, which were a rather pale grey at the moment.

8:00 rolled around and the Malfoys entered the carriage, already packed with Draco's trunks for the year. Draco stared out of the window as the countryside passed, contemplating what would happen in his last year. He'd made Head Boy that year, something that had slightly surprised and just barely pleased his father.

Suddenly the carriage stopped. Lucius stepped out and motioned for Draco to follow.

"Are you coming, mum?"

"Oh no, Draco…I think I'll stay. I'm a bit tired." Narcissa took Draco's hand. "I'm proud of you, love. I want you to have a good year, ok?"

"Yes, mum."

"Come on, boy!" Lucius said.

"Love you, mum," Draco said before he stepped out of the carriage.

Draco knew exactly why his mother wasn't going to accompany them, and why she rarely ever did. Not that Draco could ever prove it, but he had a hunch that Lucius had specifically ordered her to show as little affection as possible to her son. Unnecessarily coddling, Lucius would call it, and berate her for her stupidity. In fact, if Lucius were cruel to his son, it was nothing compared to what he showed to his own wife. Lucius insisted she do everything he said, which rarely coincided with her own wishes, and Draco could hardly understand what kept her at his side. Lucius had control over her entire life, and assumed he would control Draco's also. Well, he had another thing coming.

Just outside of the train, they stopped.

"I'm proud of you, son," Lucius said as he grasped Draco's shoulders. "Of course, the Head Boy position was to be expected, so you have done extremely well in not disappointing me. It is a pity that the Head Girl is a mudblood. Do not let her show you up. You will be sorely displeased if she does."

"Of course, father."

"And when you return at the end of the year…you will be ready."

"Yes, father."

"Do not fail me." And with that, Lucius turned away to return to the carriage.

It was little things like that, expecting him to become a Death Eater, that really pissed Draco off. _Why would I want to spend my time serving a crazy murderer?_ Draco glared at his father's retreating back and imagined himself suddenly sticking a knife through it. _Wouldn't that be a pleasant surprise?_

His thoughts were often of that nature, especially as of late. His father was dead-set on having Draco as one of Voldemort's Death Eaters, but little did he know that Draco had resolved himself never to go down that path. In fact, there was very little that his father truthfully knew about Draco. Lucius didn't know that Draco hated him and everything he stood for with a passion. He didn't know that Draco despised Voldemort and hoped for his downfall at the hands of Harry Potter, no matter how much he personally hated The Boy Who Lived. He didn't know that Draco would gladly kill every single Death Eater himself if there had been the chance he could escape with his life. And Lucius certainly didn't know that Draco wanted to place his hands around his neck, and squeeze, every time he spouted his Muggle inferiority bullcrap.

But Draco wasn't stupid. Not that he ever wanted to talk to his father, but Draco was under no illusion that he could safely tell Lucius what he really thought of Muggles. In truth Draco saw no problem with them—he liked them, even; though he had come in contact with very few. He considered them to be pretty ingenious for people who didn't have magic to serve their needs. And he appreciated their culture and customs, and knew quite a bit about them. But he would never say that to his father. Surely Lucius would kill him with his bare hands if he heard that there was even a question in Draco's mind about his father's correctness—because Lucius was a madman. Lucius was under the impression that everything he said was truth, and that it was madness to think any other way—but Lucius himself was deluded. He was so incredibly wrong in his view of the world, and human life, and people in general. So Draco spent most of the time in his father's presence wishing for Lucius' death, but knowing that it wouldn't happen anytime soon. And until it did, his father would exercise his will over Draco and choose every aspect of his life for him.

Like the pureblooded people he spent his time with. Yes, of course, he was destined to associate only with people who upheld the same ludicrous beliefs as his father. He peered through the window of the train at his so-called friends, who were most likely waiting for his arrival in their compartment, and frowned in disgust. And these people were just as snotty, deluded, and Muggle-hating as his father; only Lucius was more fanatical in his beliefs…

Sighing, Draco entered the compartment, where Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle grunted their congratulations on making Head Boy.

"Oh Draco, I'm so proud of you," Pansy gushed. "So who's the Head Girl? I hope it's not that stupid mudblood Granger."

"Pansy, if she were stupid, she wouldn't be Head Girl."

"Ugh, it is her! What is happening to this school?"

Draco ignored her and closed his eyes, trying to think. Yes, Granger was Head Girl, but wasn't that to be expected? She was way ahead of the other witches and wizards in their grade.

"Draco?"

He opened his eyes. "Go away, Pansy."

"What do you mean, Draco?"

"Exactly what I said. As a matter of fact, why don't you all leave? I want to be alone right now."

Crabbe and Goyle immediately stood and walked to the exit, dragging a reluctant Pansy with them.

_Honestly, why do I bury myself with these inferior minds?_ It was a shame that he was forced to spend time with people who would never provide him with the intellectual stimulation he would have liked. But that was just another part of the life that wasn't really his.

Draco lay back with his hands behind his head when Pansy suddenly reappeared.

"Draco, what's wrong?"

"Didn't I tell you I wanted to be alone?"

"I know, but it looks like you've got something on your mind."

Draco stood and walked to the door where Pansy was standing.

"I can make it better…" she said, placing her hands on his chest.

"Pansy, get out."

"Oh come on, Draco." She moved her hands down to his pants and began unzipping them. Draco stopped her and grabbed her hands.

"I've told you so many times not to do that. Now leave," he said, pushing her out of the compartment and slamming the door.

Did the wench ever quit? She'd been trying to get into his pants forever. He'd even gone so far as to tell her that he was a virgin and wanted to wait until marriage. She'd even bought it, the idiot, but that still didn't stop her from latching onto him every chance she got.

Of course, he wasn't really a virgin. He was far from it. If there were such a thing as the opposite of a virgin, then maybe he could be that. It wasn't his fault though; he had to keep up with the reputation. And Draco knew a lot about keeping up with reputations.

It had all started with the first girl he'd slept with at the school—a Slytherin, of course. She couldn't keep her mouth shut to all the other Slytherin girls, and anyone else who would listen, about how good he was. He'd dumped her when he realized the cause of the sudden large groups of Slytherin girls following him around and batting their lashes at him. They just had to find out what was so good about him. So he shagged a few girls. But they wouldn't go away, so he dumped them too.

And the girls just kept coming. They all wanted to know what it was like; they all wanted to tame him, as he was quickly becoming a legend in himself. The catch was, the only way to get rid of them permanently was to shag and then painfully dump them. So he did. Shag and dump and shag and dump and the cycle continued on.

So it wasn't really his fault that he was known by all the girls as Draco Malfoy the sex god of Hogwarts. Hey, it was their fault.

Draco came out of his reverie when the train began to move. He looked at his watch. 9:00. And that Heads' meeting was at 9:10. Figuring that he wasn't being very productive where he was, he decided to go to the Heads' compartment. Show Granger up, and make a good impression.

When Draco arrived, he was surprised at how nicely it was furnished. The seats were cushioned unlike the others in the train, and the floor was carpeted. There were even a few books on a shelf if he wanted to read. Better yet, there was also a candy cart, stocked with just about everything so that he wouldn't have to bother waiting for the candy cart lady to come through. He smiled and lay down on one of the seats, hoping to relax. Nope. He looked at his watch. 9:02. Ok, so he was a little early. He walked over to the candy cart, selected a piece of chocolate, and began to eat. 9:04. Still early. Gods, why couldn't he relax?

Maybe it was the fact that he'd have to associate with Granger for the rest of the year. It wasn't even that she was even that repulsive or annoying. Well, maybe she was little annoying. But he simply didn't like her.

9:06. Ok, now he wasn't so early anymore. Where was everyone? Draco got up and walked to the door. Maybe someone was coming. He opened the compartment door and came face-to-face with Hermione.


	3. Terms of Agreement

**Terms of Agreement**

When Hermione reached for the door handle she hadn't expected it to open, so when it did, she jumped, and then looked up to see Draco looking down at her. She tried to hide her shock, but it was too late. Draco was equally surprised, but more adept at hiding his reaction.

"You're early, Granger."

"So are you." She looked at him for a second as if expecting an attack, then, receiving none, pushed her way past him into the compartment. Draco inwardly groaned and shut the door.

She'd already made her way over to the bookshelf and was choosing a book to read when Draco turned around. She herself turned around to find Draco giving her a very intense look.

"So, Granger…" He moved closer.

"Yes?"

"That shirt, it's very…" He paused.

"Red?"

"Revealing."

She scowled at him and made no attempt to hide her disgust. "No it's not."

"Actually it is. Take my word for it."

She ignored him and sat down to read her book. Draco took a seat directly across from her and proceeded to look her over.

_Well, well, she certainly looks different_, he thought as he scanned her body. From the top of her head to the tips of her toes, she radiated this new aura—of what? Perhaps she didn't, but for Draco it was as if he were seeing her for the first time. He'd never had a reason to study her in the past, and so he never did—after every insult he'd flung at her, the most he would watch was her face to see if any upset had been caused there. But now that he was looking at her, well, he didn't mind what he saw. _Probably wouldn't be too bad in bed either,_ he thought. Draco noted with surprise that she wasn't unattractive as he'd always assumed she was. As he recalled, last year he felt nothing but repulsion and anger when he looked at her, but now…Hermione sat with one leg crossed over the other, her foot nervously twitching as she read, and seemed completely oblivious to his regard.

_Oh gods, is he really looking at me?_ Hermione had actually stopped reading just as soon as she'd started, when she realized that Draco's gaze was locked on her. She was feeling rather uncomfortable under his scrutiny. She was patently convinced that he could be doing nothing else but forming some scheme to embarrass and annoy her. Hermione couldn't concentrate when she knew his eyes were on her, but she continued in her efforts to read nonetheless.

A sudden bump in the train ride broke his concentration, and she took it as an opportunity to say something.

"Ma—"

"Say, Granger, what book are you reading?" he asked, cutting her off.

_Oh. He was trying to read the cover. That's why he looked so confused._ She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Just a little poetry."

"Uh huh…I must say you've changed quite a bit."

"Really?" She looked up, waiting for what he would say next.

"Yes, you might even be good for a shag now."

Hermione instantly recoiled. Had she just heard what she thought she did? "Yeah, well you can clear your head of that delusion right now because it's not going to happen," she said, deciding to take this strange comment seriously—and reject it, of course.

"What's wrong Granger? Surely you like to shag? And the chance to do so with the Draco Malfoy…"

"Draco Malfoy…" her eyes trailed down his body, "your fly is open."

"Oh, damn!" He looked down and hurriedly zipped up, cursing under his breath.

Hermione rolled her eyes. The morning had barely begun and he'd already managed to lay someone. She hadn't believed that his libido was really what it had been reputed to be, but here was the proof right in front of her. And apparently it was worse than before, if he could imagine himself touching someone who wasn't a pureblood.

"I wasn't shagging anyone, for your information," he said, as if reading her thoughts.

"Oh. I thought you were."

"Nope. Which leaves you free to—"

POP! Professor McGonagall Apparated into the compartment. Draco looked at his watch. Damn. 9:10 on the dot.

"Miss Granger, Mister Malfoy, I'm glad to see you two are on time." The professor conjured a chair and sat down so that she could face both of them. "First of all, let me offer my congratulations on being this year's Head Boy and Head Girl."

"Now," she said, clasping her hands, "let's get right down to business. As you may have guessed, this year's goal is unity. You two will be working, together, to unite the school. And I know you have your differences, but I would ask you to please cast them aside. Professor Dumbledore will talk to you later in more detail about your Head duties. For now, I will just give you this overview of the year." She handed them each a lengthy piece of parchment. "So, look those over, and then you're free to do what you want. You may stay and get to know each other better—which I would suggest—or you may return to your own compartments." She stood up. "Any questions?"

"No, professor," Draco and Hermione said simultaneously.

"Then I will see you two in the castle." With another POP! the professor Disapparated, and a second later her chair disappeared too.

"I suppose this means we'll have to get along," Hermione said.

"I suppose."

"Well, we can start by going on a first-name basis."

Surprisingly Draco didn't object.

"And no more calling me mudblood."

He didn't say anything to that either.

"And you have to be civil to Harry and Ron."

"Whoa, there…Hermione. Why should I be civil to Potter and Weasel?"

"Weasley," she corrected. "And we're supposed to be promoting school unity. You can't do that when you're constantly insulting them."

"I don't know about that," Draco said. He thought for a moment. "How about I just ignore them?"

"You know the funny thing is that would be an improvement," Hermione said.

"Alright, so I agree to all of your terms. Now you have to agree to mine."

"Shoot."

"It's only one…" She met his gaze. "How about a nice shag?"

"That's not a term of agreement," she said, narrowing her eyes.

"You know I was serious when I said that you'd changed, Hermione."

"No 'shagging'."

"Surely you're not afraid?" Draco stood and walked over to stand in front of her seat.

"Of course not," Hermione said, "I just have no desire whatsoever to do that." She shrunk back into her seat, then peered at him. "And are you even serious, Ma—Draco?"

"Of course. And I'll even tell you why we should, Hermione…"

"So there's a reason now?"

"Yes of course."

"Well, it's irrelevant. I need to change now." She stood; once again they were face-to-face, or rather, face-to-chest. "I'll see you later." She rushed off to find her robes, leaving a very irked Draco standing alone in the Heads' compartment.

It was a good thing that Draco hid his emotion so well, because he had only gotten angrier as the conversation had progressed. Who the hell did she think she was?

So maybe she was smarter than him. Ok, she was definitely smarter than him, and everyone else he knew. But did she also have to walk in and suddenly become so attractive? Since when did brains and beauty mix? To top it all off, she hadn't even flinched when he suggested they shag to seal the deal.

This was why he couldn't stand the girl, he realized. She'd dismissed him just like that, and it was so bloody infuriating. Even if her looks weren't horribly repulsive like he'd originally thought, Hermione still managed to anger him in every other aspect. She talked to him as if he were the scum of the earth, even when he wasn't going out of his way to annoy her. Maybe this was why he never felt sorry for insulting her, even if he didn't really believe what he was saying. Maybe this was why he actually enjoyed seeing the few crumpled expressions he'd managed to get out of her in the past. The girl needed to be taken down a notch. She was so incredibly proud; he could see it flashing through her eyes.

Draco knew for a fact that every girl in Hogwarts wanted him, and she wasn't an exception. Hermione only thought she was. That was probably what had annoyed him the most about her. Putting the encounter temporarily out of his head, Draco returned to his compartment to dress for their arrival at Hogwarts.


	4. Sharing is Caring

**Sharing is Caring**

_Who the hell does he think he is?_ Hermione thought as she closed her robe. _I should have hexed him right there. _Luckily for him she hadn't thought of it at the time. Clasping her badge onto her clothes, she felt the train come to a stop and exited as soon as the doors opened. She hadn't had enough time to find Harry, Ron, and Ginny, and she definitely wasn't going to be able to pick them out of the crowd. Heading towards an empty carriage, Hermione nearly screamed when a strong hand grabbed her shoulder.

"We get our own carriage, you know. All the way in the back."

She sighed. How had Draco managed to find her in spite of all these people?

He released his grip as they turned to find their carriage.

"Ladies first," Draco said and held open the door.

"Thanks, but that's unnecessary."

"Is anything for you not either irrelevant or unnecessary?" Draco asked.

"Concerning _you_, no," Hermione said as she climbed in. "But thanks, though."

"Wow. That stung." He grabbed his chest in a mock gesture of pain.

"I was kidding. Sorry."

"No, no, don't apologize. It's unnecessary."

Hermione looked up at Draco who surprisingly seemed to be smiling. She couldn't help but smile back, albeit confusedly. She definitely hadn't forgotten his ludicrous proposition on the train, but maybe she'd give him a chance to apologize.

"You're quite witty when you want to be. Draco."

"Well, you've always managed to entertain me, Hermione. Even if you didn't always like it."

"You know, we could have been nicer to each other a lot sooner if you hadn't spent so much time calling me 'mudblood'."

"I doubt that. I'd have still made fun of your boyfriends either way. Speaking of, where are they? I didn't see them on your trail when I found you."

"They're not my boyfriends. And I missed them on the train."

"Ah, I see, they wanted to be alone for some carriage shagging."

"Neither one of them is gay. And not everyone is shagging like you think they are."

"Au contraire, Hermione. Everyone is. You just choose not to see it."

As he said this, Hermione found that there was something warm now making its way up her thigh.

"What are you doing?" she yelled. She pulled his hand off her leg. "I mean, really," she said more to herself than him, "how did you manage to get a hand underneath my robe?"

"Practice makes perfect, love."

She simply crossed her legs and moved away from him.

"Alright, I apologize," Draco said, "it's just that I can't help myself."

"You can't stop yourself from maneuvering into my robes?"

"Well, when such a pretty little thing is sitting right beside me, I cannot be blamed."

"Yes you can."

"Look Hermione, I think a shag would do us, or at least me, some good."

"Get off it."

"No, really. I made the suggestion for a reason, if you remember. I figured that we do it now and I won't have to wonder…what's under those robes later."

"This is your reasoning?"

"But if you don't agree, then I guess we can call the shag off."

"It was never on."

"Fine, fine. I apologize, Hermione. I won't mention it again."

She looked up at him. "Really?"

"Yes."

His eyes were now a sharp silver, she noticed, like they'd been when he'd first made that ridiculous proposition. The look in his eyes was downright scary, but she shrugged it off and spoke.

"Apology accepted. Maybe you're not so bad after all."

When the carriage stopped, Draco helped her out ("Unnecessary," she said) and then stood still holding her hand.

"Umm…" Hermione looked down the warm hand that was currently holding her own, "I'm going to go find my gang now," and slipped out of his hold.

She practically ran to the Great Hall entrance, and sighed with relief when she spotted Harry waving her over from the Gryffindor table.

"What happened Hermione?" he asked.

"Yeah, we missed you. I thought you were coming back," said Ron.

"Well, I kind of had to ride in a Heads' carriage."

"With Malfoy?"

"He is a Head."

"I still don't like it…hey, the sorting's beginning," he said, and they all turned to watch.

After the hat finished sorting the first years, Dumbledore stood for his customary beginning-of-the-year speech.

"I will not be long because I know we are all anxious to eat, to rest, to do other things. So, to the second years and up: the rules are exactly the same as last year's. To the first years: Professor McGonagall (he gestured to the witch) will give you your instructions separately. And finally, to announce this year's Head Girl and Head Boy. Please stand, Hermione Granger ("Of course!" someone yelled and the Hall erupted into laughter), and Draco Malfoy. Congratulations to you both. Now, to everyone else: let's eat!"

A collective sigh ran through the Hall as food appeared on the tables. Lots of Gryffindors yelled their congratulations to Hermione as the meal went on. When Hermione was finished, she heard a soft buzzing coming from her badge.

"What the—"

"Miss Granger," Dumbledore's voice came through the badge, "please report to the Great Hall exit as soon as you are ready."

Which would be right about now. She didn't waste any time and stood as soon as the buzzing stopped.

"Hermione, where're you going?" Harry asked.

"Head business," she replied.

"Wait, how do you have work already?" Ron asked.

"It's all in the badge guys," she said and hurried off before anyone could ask any more questions.

When she reached the exit, Draco and Dumbledore were already waiting. Hermione and Draco locked eyes as she approached. "You're late," he mouthed, and she rolled her eyes.

"Come," Dumbledore said, "we're going to the Heads' dormitory."

The two Heads followed Dumbledore around a corner, and then another where they stopped in front of a suit of armor. Reaching out to grab its spear, Dumbledore motioned for them to move forward. A staircase appeared, and they followed Dumbledore up the stairs. They stopped in front of a portrait of a man and woman, who seemed to be trying their hardest to ignore them.

"Now, you will each have your own password so there'll be no confusion," Dumbledore said. "You can change them now if you want." He told them their respective passwords, and then all three entered.

Dumbledore closed the door behind him and then spoke. "This is the Heads' dorm, and you two are going to share it, so, do try to get along," he said as he swept his gaze over both of them. "You each have your own bathrooms, and you'll share this common room and the working space in it. Of course, I would encourage you to not spend all of your time here. You wouldn't want to lose touch with the members of your Houses." Dumbledore turned to go. "There won't be any funny business, I hope," he said and then was gone.

The common room was actually quite nice. It was done up in both the Gryffindor and Slytherin colors. The carpet was a pattern of red and green, effectively making the room look as if it were decorated for Christmas. Ornaments atop the fireplace were adorned in silver and gold. There were two couches, one facing the fire and the other facing the entrance. There were also two bookcases, although one was empty. The other held the books that had been in the Heads' compartment on the train.

Hermione made her way towards a red carpeted staircase, and Draco to the other. When she reached the top, she found yet another portrait guarding the entrance. She said the password and entered.

Inside was a mini-hallway which led to a bedroom that looked as if it had been enlarged—but no, it was just that big. The carpet was done in red and gold, and when Hermione looked closer she could observe little streaks of green.

"Always with the unity," she said aloud.

Her clothes had already been put into the closet, she noted with pleasure. She walked over to the window, and pulled back the curtains hoping for a good view. It was. Sticking her head outside, she took in the cold night air.

"Hermione…"

She turned to the direction her name had come from, but saw no one. Suddenly Draco's head appeared out of a window.

"I'm assuming your room looks exactly like mine," she said.

Draco looked as if he were considering it for a second, then his head disappeared inside. She could hear him mutter some words as she closed the window, and was rather surprised to see the walls of the room had disappeared. Looking around she realized she could see through the two bathrooms and into Draco's room. He was lowering his wand and surveying her room, and then her.

"Looks like it," he said, "but in better colors."

"Hmm." Hermione was pleasantly surprised. "That's a nifty spell right there. I hope you won't be using it for that purpose again, though."

The ghost of a grin slipped onto his face, but Draco said nothing and simply said the reversal spell so that she once again was looking at the red walls of her room.


	5. Books and Things

**Books and Things**

It wasn't exactly late, but Hermione was pretty exhausted from just living through the day. She decided to change into her night clothes and go read by the common room fire until she became sleepy. After changing out of her uniform, she wandered down to the common room and over to the packed bookshelf. Luckily for Hermione, it contained the book she'd been briefly reading on the train before Draco had interrupted her. She pulled it out and settled onto the couch.

* * *

Apparently Hermione hadn't gone to sleep as Draco had thought. Instead she was sitting, in front of their fire, reading. After a shower he'd come to the common room hoping she was there. Lucky him. Now maybe he could put his plan in action, or at least figure out why she'd resisted in the first place.

"Is reading the only thing you do?" he asked.

"Would you believe me if I said yes?" Hermione looked up to see Draco hovering over her, an amused expression on his face. He was contemplating her question.

"Yes," he answered after a moment, then took a seat next to her. "I know you're trying to keep up the appearance of a bookworm, but you don't have to read when other people aren't around."

"Maybe I like reading."

"Maybe you do."

Once again, he was there interrupting her reading by staring at her. The worst thing was that she knew why he was looking at her. _I'll just ignore him,_ she thought, _and maybe he'll go away. _

Draco also didn't know why he was sitting here, silently staring at this girl, instead of just making his move. He was particularly captivated by the way the flames brought out the different colors in her hair. First a little red, then a lighter strand here and there. Maybe it was her lips, which at the moment were curved down into a pout. Her eyelashes gave her the appearance of sleeping, but he knew she was just intently focused on her book. Finally she put it down and sighed.

"Is there something you want, Draco?"

"What? Oh no, nothing."

"Umm, ok." She turned to look at him. He said nothing, just kept looking at her until she turned away and reached for her book. Draco grabbed it instead and began flipping through the pages.

"Give it back."

"Well, since you asked so nicely…no."

She reached for the book again and he held it up above her head. She got up on her knees and attempted to grab it, but Draco simply pulled his arm behind his back. She reached around his back and couldn't find it with one hand, so she tried two.

"Draco, just give it back."

_I could get used to this kind of flirting_, he thought, appreciating how her hands had wrapped around his midsection. Draco stopped struggling under her weight and sat up. Hermione was sent off-balance by this sudden movement and went tumbling off the couch.

"Now that was just plain mean, Malfoy."

She sat up on the floor, pouting and glaring at the same time. He simply laughed and picked up the book from where it lay on the couch, and began to peruse its pages again.

"Don't you want your book?" he teased.

"Yes, so give it to me," she said, still glaring.

"Alright, I will—if you kiss me first." Hermione rolled her eyes. "It's an even exchange in my opinion."

Hermione sighed. What was with him? Her mind was still reeling with its attempts to process this sudden shift in his behavior, and she was only becoming more disturbed as time passed.

"Ok," she said suddenly, causing him to blink in surprise. He hadn't expected her to give in so easily. "But you will give it to me, promise?"

"I am a man of my word."

Hermione stood and looked at him. She, of course, had no intentions of making it anything lengthy, just a distraction so she could leave as quickly as possible. He wiggled his lips at her teasingly and she held out her hand.

"Book first."

His gaze still hadn't left her face. "Are you a woman of your word?"

"Of course, and a lot more than you'll ever be." He frowned suddenly, looking strangely hurt, but handed her the book anyway. "Oh, I was just kidding, Malfoy; don't be so sensitive." She looked at the book he had placed in her hand, then at her staircase. He seemed to be expecting her to leave.

Hermione sighed and leaned down to quickly place his lips on her. In a flash, he had grabbed her arm with one hand, her waist with the other, and was pulling her to him. She landed squarely on his lap and he grasped her tightly to his body, and began to probe her mouth with his tongue.

Hermione instinctively grabbed his shirt, as she was awkwardly perched atop his lap and leaning over the floor. He took this as a sign of consent, and twisting her body, laid her on the couch without breaking the kiss.

His kisses and her sudden changes in position had taken the breath out of her. She put up no resistance against the onslaught of kisses that Draco was placing all over her face. Hermione leaned back into the couch and waited for her breath to come back. And he was only making it harder with the persistent action of his mouth. Truth be told, his lips were starting to feel quite wonderful on her skin. Draco took his time in kissing every part of her face, stopping every so often to taste her skin as if she were some kind of heavenly food.

Draco slowed in his kisses and momentarily lifted his lips away from her skin. Hermione's breath was still hitched in her throat, and her eyes were closed. As her breathing finally returned to normal, she slowly she opened her eyes and looked at him.

It was a rather unexpected vision, seeing Draco there straddling her legs with his own, gazing intently into her face and at her mouth. Then, just as quickly, he was back again, and his lips were on her cheek, her neck, her collar, slowly making their way down her body. He kissed her again, and this time Hermione responded, parting her lips in expectance of his waiting tongue. His hands began to explore her body; he ran a hand through her hair, then arched her body into his and began running his hands up and down her back. She supported herself by continuing to cling to his shirt as his hands went back to her torso, now sliding under her shirt and covering her breast. She gasped as he gave her a particularly sharp squeeze and let go of his shirt, falling back onto the couch.

"Draco."

He had already stopped, though, and, hands still poised underneath her shirt, was looking at her. She removed his hands from her shirt and opened her eyes. A puzzled expression appeared on his face as she pulled her shirt back down and pulled herself out from underneath him.

"Why are you leaving?" he asked.

"Because this is…I just can't do this."

She turned away, disregarded the book that she'd wanted in the first place and quickly walked up her staircase.

_What the hell? _Draco thought.

* * *

_I can't believe I just let that happen,_ Hermione thought as she lay back on the bed. _He probably thinks I want to shag now…_

_But you didn't stop him, did you? _a little voice asked.

"No, of course not! I barely had time to think! What did you expect me to do?"

_Not kiss him back, maybe?_

"Ugh. There's something wrong with me."

_Well, it might be the fact that you're talking to yourself._

"Shut up."

_Suit yourself,_ the voice said.

Hermione was baffled at the events that had just taken place. She didn't know what to make of them. _Why had Draco done that?_ she asked herself. So maybe it was her fault for letting things go that far, but still…Hermione was now having more than a bit of trouble grasping the idea that he had actually been serious about all this shagging business. And she couldn't believe that she had not only kissed him, but had kissed him like that. It was like her body was operating on an entirely different set of rules than her mind, which had conveniently shut off for their interaction. Thank the gods she didn't take to people groping her chest…

And he was Draco Malfoy! He was cruel and evil, wasn't he? Didn't he hate her guts with a passion? And didn't she return the sentiment? Yet she had been snogging him just minutes ago and letting him touch her body in a way no one ever had before.

"I need a shower." But Hermione didn't move, just laid there for a while. She eventually pushed all confusing thoughts out of her head, and finally crawled underneath her covers in hopes of drifting into sleep as quickly as possible.

* * *

Draco, however, was not doing the same. He lay face up on his bed, trying to figure out what had gone wrong. He'd had Hermione right where he wanted her, and then suddenly she'd stopped and left.

_She definitely wanted it, _Draco thought. In spite of her painfully obvious virginity, she had responded just as quickly as someone—say Pansy—would have when Draco placed his lips on hers. _So then what went wrong? _He'd been seconds from getting her to personally pull off her knickers and place them in his hand.

_Maybe you were pushing it,_ a voice said.

"Maybe I wasn't."

_She did say after all that she wasn't interested, _the voice continued.

"And yet she kissed me back."

_It's a bit hard to resist when you've got another person lying on top of you, _the voice returned

"She must have known that I was baiting her. And she could've stopped any time before I was…ready."

_You'd be upset no matter what time she'd stopped._

"Whatever. She's just a tease anyway."

_Hermione the bookworm? A tease? Don't kid yourself, Draco._

"What do you know? You're just a voice. In my head, I might add."

_Which means I know everything that goes on inside of you. Just admit that you want her…_

"Of course I do, but she is making it difficult."

It had been the perfect plan, and even more so with her consenting to it. But he'd expected that she would. And surprisingly she'd kept going once he'd had her in his arms and underneath him. Hermione had proved what Draco suspected all along—she wanted him like all the other girls at Hogwarts. And he would have her. Getting her, however, might prove more difficult than he'd previously thought. He knew he wouldn't trust himself if were in Hermione's place. Her good sense was obviously going to fight this the entire way, just as it had a few minutes ago. But as long as that sense didn't cause her to run away again, he'd have her soon enough.

_This is ridiculous, _Draco thought, standing up to clear his head. _I need a hot shower… _


	6. Head Business

**Head Business **

Hermione sat in their common room the next morning, waiting for Draco to appear. She needed to explain why she'd run away the night before. _Well, I don't even really know why myself,_ she thought.

Finally she heard his footsteps coming down the stairs.

"Draco," she began when he finally appeared.

He stopped when he heard his name, glanced at her for a second, but then exited the portrait door without saying a word.

"That went well," she said to the air. _I don't even know why I bothered. _After a few minutes, Hermione got up and followed Draco's trail to the Great Hall. Ginny waved Hermione over as soon as she entered.

"What's up, Hermione? I thought you were going to come by the common room last night."

"Sorry, Ginny, I got a little caught up."

"With what?" asked Ron.

"Oh, just a little Head business," Hermione said.

"Oh really?" Ginny asked, lowering her voice.

"Well…ok, no," Hermione said in a whisper. "Draco and I kind of had a run-in."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, we, umm…we, uh, got into it, if you know what I mean."

"You shagged him!"

"No!"

Ginny looked at her unconvinced.

"No, I didn't," Hermione repeated. "But he was talking about it in the Heads' compartment…and in the Heads' carriage…"

"And you didn't shag?"

"No!"

"So what did you do then?"

"Well…" she looked nervously around, "he just…" Hermione exhaled and rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to discuss this with you."

"Come on, Hermione," Ginny begged. "You have to give me detail—extreme detail."

Hermione gave her an amused look. "This isn't porn, Ginny."

"I know. But it is very surprising. Go on, spill it…"

Hermione shook her head as if disappointed, but continued. "Well, he kissed me a lot. And he had his hands up my shirt…" Hermione paused in thought. It was actually quite pleasant, now that she thought about it.

"So then why didn't you shag him?"

"Stop saying shag…I didn't want to." Hermione frowned.

"Oh." Ginny looked over to the Slytherin table. Sitting directly across from them was Draco, whose gaze was currently locked on Hermione.

"He's looking, Hermione," Ginny stated.

"What? Oh…" Hermione looked up. Draco looked down. "No he's not."

"He just looked away. Honestly, Hermione…"

Hermione resumed eating and Draco resumed staring. Ginny rolled her eyes. He was so intent on Hermione that he didn't even seem to notice that Ginny had noticed him.

"How do we manage to have Potions, first, with the Slytherins, yet another year in a row?" Ron suddenly yelled out.

"I don't know Ron, but we'd better leave now if we don't want to be late," Hermione said. She gathered her books and exited the Great Hall, Harry and Ron rushing to catch up with her. There was a crowd when they all reached the entrance of Snape's classroom.

"Quiet down. Now, since we all know each other," the professor smirked, "find a partner and we will begin immediately."

Hermione looked worriedly around the classroom. Harry and Ron had already gone off to sit at one of the benches.

"Sorry," Harry mouthed to her.

"Lavender," Ron said.

But Lavender was already with Parvati. Everywhere Hermione looked, people had already partnered up. Even Neville had partnered up with Dean. Now there were only three other people left standing besides Hermione: Pansy Parkinson, Millicent Bulstrode—and Draco.

_Finally, an easy choice._

"Come on," she said, walking over to Draco, then began looking around for a seat.

"Draco!" Pansy yelled. "What are you doing with Granger?"

"She's my partner," Draco said.

"But she's a—"

"The Head Girl, yes. And I am the Head Boy. So we have to work together."

"You know, promoting school unity," Hermione couldn't help but add. Pansy glared at her, then stalked over to Millicent.

Draco and Hermione took the last open bench in front of Professor Snape's desk.

"Thanks," they both said simultaneously as they sat down.

"For what?" Hermione asked Draco.

"For saving me from the displeasure of having to work with Pansy."

"I thought you guys were close."

"No, she just won't stop following me around," Draco said. "And you?"

"What? Oh yeah, same thing," Hermione said and Draco smiled.

Snape glared at them before he began to speak. "Today's potion may seem a little familiar to you, and especially anyone who's Apparated before. That should be none of you yet. Wizards of the past used this potion before the apparition spells were created." He pointed to the board, and instructions appeared. "Begin. Now."

Hermione stood up to get the ingredients, and when she returned, Draco immediately threw them into the cauldron. They began mixing the potion and, in about thirty minutes, were done.

"Wow, that was fast," she commented.

"Yes. But I don't like everything fast, you know. Sometimes it's good to go slow," he said, fixing his eyes on her. "Of course, fast is always nice too."

Hermione rolled her eyes, then remembered why she'd gotten up so early that morning.

"Draco, about last night…"

"You enjoyed it?"

She ignored him and continued. "I didn't mean for that to happen."

"Well, why not? You seemed to mean it up until the point you ran away."

"I didn't run away, I just didn't know what to do. I didn't mean to let things go that far. I mean, I haven't even ever…" She stopped.

"Shagged before? Yes, I know."

"No, not that," she said.

"Wait, what…you mean you've never snogged someone either?"

"Well…yes…"

"Hmmm…" Draco considered this for a second. "Very well done for someone who's never kissed anyone before. Quite pleasurable."

She ignored that too. "Look, basically it can't happen again," Hermione said.

"Alright. Alright, I understand." Draco paused. "And this is why I think we both need a good shag to straighten us out—"

"Will you stop talking about shagging for once?"

"How do you expect me to do that with you there?"

"What?"

"Hermione, you are an enticing creature." She rolled her eyes in exasperation. "It's true, you just don't know it."

Hermione looked up at him. He was gazing at her fixedly; or at least at a part of her.

"Ugh. Stop looking at my chest," Hermione said.

"I don't think you could if you were in my position."

"Stop it."

"Just one quick shag. Or slow if you like, and I promise I won't bother you anymore," Draco said he trailed his hand up her thigh.

"Will you get your—"

"Miss Granger, Mister Malfoy, will you kindly stop talking? I realize you are finished, but that is no warrant for interrupting the rest of the class."

"I apologize, Professor," Draco said. "We were just discussing some Head business."

"Yes, well, discuss your 'Head business' some other time." Snape returned his glare to the papers on his desk, then looked up again. "Since you two are done, I suppose you will have no trouble testing your potion." Draco removed his hand from Hermione's robes and reached for a vial. "Miss Granger," the professor added.

Draco reluctantly filled the vial with some of their potion and handed it to Hermione. What if he'd left out an ingredient? They did sort of rush through it…Oh well. At least if it were botched he'd have the chance to see her embarrassed. He had to get his kicks somehow.

The class had become extremely quiet by then so as to hear the exchange going on between Snape and the two Heads. Hermione put the vial to her lips, tipped it back, then disappeared.

Draco's expression remained blank as he debated whether or not to panic. Gods, was that supposed to happen? Maybe he should've been paying attention to what Snape had been saying. He waited a few more seconds and with a POP! Hermione was back in her seat.

"Whoa," she said.

"Well, I see your potion has gone off just fine. Even had the little extra pop and everything. Very well, you are done for the day. I suppose I won't have to check your potion for a grade." Snape scowled, then returned to the seat at his desk. "Do not resume talking," he said before looking down at his papers. "I will not hesitate to take points off a Head."

Hermione knew that one was meant specifically for her.


	7. Things I Don’t Understand

**Things I Don't Understand**

Hermione was completely exhausted by the time she got back to her dorm. Every single one of her teachers had assigned homework, with the exception of Snape: he called his homework an 'extra credit' assignment, and had only given it to the two Heads. Snape wanted them to determine what exactly it was in the potion that had caused Hermione to disappear. He wanted to know what had caused the POP! too. What kind of assignment was that, anyway?

At dinner Hermione's badge began buzzing, and then Professor McGonagall's voice came through. "Professor Dumbledore would like the Heads to report to his office after dinner." She told them the password, then the buzzing noise drowned her voice out.

Sighing, Hermione got up and left the Great Hall. She arrived at the headmaster's office to find Draco and Dumbledore already waiting inside.

"Good evening, Miss Granger," Dumbledore said. "Let's get started." Hermione took a seat. "Well," the wizard said, "I've got an exciting announcement. This year you two will be organizing a Halloween dance. You are free to do whatever you want with the planning. I dare say it will be the first we've had in quite a while, so try to do your best on this project. I would suggest starting right away. If you need any help, do not hesitate to ask the heads of your houses." Dumbledore paused. "That's about it, I suppose," he finally said, "so you may go."

The two Heads rose and walked to the exit, Draco in the lead.

"Goodbye, Professor," Hermione said before she shut the door behind her. She inwardly groaned as soon as they were out of Dumbledore's earshot.

"I'm completely bogged down with work," Hermione complained.

"Me too," Draco said, "and we've got to start today."

"I guess this is what being a Head really is. Oh well. Maybe if we work efficiently enough we can be finished by tonight."

They made their way back to the dorm and entered.

"Of course, this is exciting," Hermione exclaimed. "I've always wanted to plan a dance." They sat down. "So, what should be our theme?"

"Classic Halloween."

"What?"

"Classic Halloween. I'm tired of themes. Maybe we should go with something we know works."

"Hmmm." Hermione looked at him thoughtfully. "I guess…that's not a bad idea."

"Ok. And the band?"

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, then decided against it.

"What?' Draco asked.

"Oh, nothing…I was going to make a joke about the Smashing Pumpkins…"

"Yeah, they're not that great of a band, are they?"

"You know the Smashing Pumpkins?" Hermione asked. "But that's a Muggle band!"

"Yes, I know. Yet another reason why they shouldn't perform for the dance."

"Wow…" she trailed off, now seriously regarding Draco as he spoke.

"The decorations and the food," he said.

"Hmmm…I don't know how we're going to do that."

"Well, the house elves are here for a reason."

"What do you mean, they're 'here for a reason'?"

"Have you ever considered that they enjoy working? They don't consider their service to be servitude."

Hermione simply stared at him.

"We can ask them, nicely, to decorate for us. And we can specify on the food too. If you want," he added.

"Well, ok…"

"So, are we about done?"

"Yeah, all we've got to do is post notices."

"Great. Didn't think we'd finish that quickly."

"Well, ok…" Hermione rose to go to her room. "I guess I'm off to—"

"Hermione, wait, can we talk?" Draco asked.

"Well, alright…" She took a seat on the couch.

"About the shagging…"

Hermione opened her mouth to tell him off once and for all.

"I'm sorry," he continued.

She shut her mouth.

"I mean, if you really don't want to, then…I guess I won't bother you anymore."

"Really?" She eyed him warily.

"Yes, it obviously makes you uncomfortable."

"It doesn't make me uncomfortable per se…"

"Of course it does."

"No, it doesn't."

"Come on, Hermione. Even the mention of the idea turns you red."

"Well, maybe that's because I feel threatened."

"Yes I know, and that's why I mean to stop." He paused. "But I hold to you being an enticing creature."

For some reason, she couldn't break the gaze between them. Thankfully he did it for her by standing up.

"Well?" he said.

"Well what? Oh yes, apology accepted." She couldn't help add as she rose, "I didn't think you had it in you."

"I'm not who you think I am, Hermione."

"I think I'll be the judge of that. Good night," she said as she made her way up the staircase.

"Of course, the offer still stands," she could hear Draco say just before she closed her portrait door.

* * *

Once again, they were discussing the subject of house elves.

"I don't care what you say; no creature wants to be owned by another."

"It's not a matter of wanting to be owned by someone. They just are."

"Oh really? Then why was Dobby so happy to earn his freedom?"

"Because he was being mistreated. The majority of house elves, especially the ones in Hogwarts, are well taken care of."

"Well, that's all they know."

"And they're happy with it. Who doesn't want to be taken care of? Have you thought about where they would be if they didn't have wizards to serve? The magical world isn't exactly a welcoming place to them."

"That still doesn't change the fact that no one should have to be forced into something and be unable to change the circumstances."

"I agree with you, Hermione. Believe me, I do."

Something in his tone made Hermione look up. His eyes had changed from their usual grey to a burning silver, and he seemed to be completely lost to his thoughts.

"What do you mean?"

"It's nothing really…just my mum…though I suppose she's got no other choice but to stay with my father."

Hermione's eyes settled on his, astonished that he was talking about something even remotely personal.

Draco continued. "It's not like she can run off; she'd have no way to take care of herself…He treats her horridly, won't let her do anything he knows is even slightly enjoyable."

"Draco, I didn't know…"

He looked up and scoffed. "And he thinks he's going to control me too; but I will never follow in his footsteps."

Hermione made a noise but said nothing. Draco turned to face her.

"You mean you don't want to?" she asked.

"I told you, Hermione, I'm not the Draco everyone thinks I am."

"You're not?" she said skeptically. "And what Draco would that be?"

"Hmm." He met her gaze. "Let's just say that everything you think you know about me is false."

"Whoa. That's quite a bit of information to denounce, don't you think?"

She was now eyeing him with a more than interested expression. Maybe now she would figure out what was the truth behind this strange behavior that had commenced at their meeting in the Heads' compartment. Perhaps it had to do with this different Draco he claimed to be.

"I never said you had to believe me. In fact, maybe it's better that you don't," he said, now wishing he hadn't revealed so much. "Then I won't have to worry about this information leaking out."

Hermione laughed. "Surely, if what you say is true, it would be better than your current situation if it did leak? Then maybe so many people wouldn't despise you because they think you're a beastly person."

"Well, aren't you one for directness?" Draco said, feeling the beginnings of anger rise in his chest. "So everyone hates me, do they? I guess now I don't have to bother finding out what people really think."

"Oh, gods, I'm sorry," she said, realizing how harsh her comment had been. "I didn't mean that; it's just that you haven't exactly always been _my_ favorite person—"

"And you're surrounded by friends who hate me too. So why would you think otherwise?" Then, more to himself than her: "I don't know why I expected you to."

Hermione glared at him for a moment. "I don't know what you think you're pulling, Draco. There's no way that you're this different person you claim to be. No one can just hide himself away like that."

"Don't talk about things you don't know, Granger." Draco was on his feet now, and looking down at her with an expression at once a mixture of hurt and contempt. "For someone who's supposed to one of the brightest witches ever, you sure talk a lot about things you obviously don't understand."

"Ok, Draco, give it up." Hermione was now on her feet and returning his same intense glare. "What's the game this time? Is this just another one of your plans to embarrass and hurt me? And do you really think I'm going to buy it? Honestly," she said, crossing her arms at the chest, "next you'll be saying that you don't think Muggles are beneath you."

"I don't," he said flatly.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?" She stared silently at him for a second. "Wow. You amaze me, Malfoy. Your lies are the most ludicrous I've ever heard. Ever." Hermione turned on her heel and began to walk to her staircase.

"I bet I know the Muggle world just as well as you do."

Hermione stopped in her tracks and turned around. A harsh laughed escaped her lips as if he'd just told an exceptionally funny joke. "Prove it."

"Ask me anything you want, then. I know about it all. I know about telephones. And mailboxes. And the internet."

Hermione was unfazed by this exclamation. "Ok. What's a tampon, then?"

Draco wrinkled his nose in disgust. "I unfortunately know about that too. When they're having their…times…females stick them—"

"Ok, Draco, that's fine." She now regarded him incredulously. "How did you know that?"

"Like I said, I know a lot."

"Well maybe you do…" she said as she stared at him.

Draco was still angry, however, and wouldn't meet her eye. He turned away and began walking to his own staircase.

"Wait!" Hermione said and he stopped. "Why don't you want people to know all this? If you're really not a Muggle-hating bastard, why would you want to hide that?"

Draco turned around to face her. "And be the cause of my own death? My father would have me dead as soon as possible if he knew I sided with Muggles."

"Oh."

"Oh, she says. Of course." Draco shook his head at Hermione's surprised expression.

"Well you're not the only one with parent problems," she said as she walked back to the couch.

A bitter grin slipped onto his face. Draco wanted to tell her that it was more than just a 'parent problem', but he refrained. "Yeah?" he asked and sat back down too.

"My parents," she said, "don't even want me here."

"Then why are you here?"

"Because I want to be. But they don't want me to stay in the magical world after Hogwarts."

"You mean you're just going to leave?" Draco asked, dismayed. "Well, you can't do that."

Hermione gave him a questioning look.

"You're one of the brightest witches ever. It would be a shame if we all lost you."

"Well, I have no intentions of leaving."

"Good, then. Take my example and don't ever do what your parents tell you to." He smiled.

"Will do, Draco Malfoy."

* * *

This chapter's title was inspired by a song off Coldplay's latest album… 


	8. Split Personality?

**Split Personality?**

"So I think maybe he's mental," Hermione said to Ginny as they sat down to dinner.

"What, for staring at you so blatantly right now?" Ginny asked.

Hermione turned and looked up into a pair of silver eyes. Currently their owner was across the Hall, ignoring the fact that Pansy was yelling to get his attention, looking directly at the spot where the two girls sat.

Ginny rolled her eyes.

Harry and Ron walked in and took seats on either side of them.

"What's up guys?" Ginny asked.

"Nothing," Ron said.

"What about you?" Harry said to no one in particular. No response. He looked up. Ginny was looking at Hermione, who was looking across the Hall…at Draco Malfoy? _My eyes are playing with me,_ he thought.

"What about you?" Harry repeated.

"What! Oh, Harry," Hermione said, dragging her eyes from Draco.

Harry looked at Draco, who had stopped looking at Hermione and was now giving Harry a particularly hateful glare. Harry returned the gesture then turned back to Hermione.

"So when do we finally get to see the Head dorm?" he asked. Ginny rolled her eyes again as Draco finally turned away.

"Whenever you want," Hermione replied.

"Hey, why don't we go now?" Ginny asked.

"Ok. Harry, Ron, are you guys coming?"

"Aww, we just got here…" Harry said.

Ron was concentrated on his plate and didn't seem to hear Hermione, or anyone else for that matter.

"Ok, suit yourselves." Hermione looked over at the Slytherin table. Draco was gone, which probably meant he was back in the dorm. Hopefully he wasn't going to be too distracting.

The girls made their way to the dorm and entered the portrait. Sitting on a couch, in only his boxers, was Draco. He was reading when they entered.

"Hey Hermione," he said, looking up. Then he noted the redhead behind her. "You brought a Weasley?" he asked.

"Shove it," Ginny said to him.

"Anywhere you want, little girl."

Ginny gave him a disgusted look and then threw Hermione a questioning glance. Hermione shrugged, and then the redhead followed her up the stairs to her bedroom.

"I see what you're talking about," Ginny said as she sat on the bed. "Is he always that bad?"

"Actually, no. He's even stopped talking about the shagging."

"Really? I thought he was bent on doing that."

"Apparently not anymore. I think he's changed…"

"Yeah, right. He just knows he's not going to get it from you."

"I don't know…he hasn't mentioned it once since he promised not to."

"Hmmm."

"But you know what he has mentioned? His parents. And he says that he's completely different from the Draco everyone knows and hates." Ginny listened in surprise as Hermione told her what he'd divulged about his mother, and his apparently detailed knowledge of Muggle affairs. "I can't figure him out," she ended.

"It's been a month, you can't expect to know everything."

"The funny thing is I think I would if he were anyone else. But with him there's Brooding Draco, and Aloof Draco, and Caring Draco, and now this weird completely Alternate Universe Draco…"

"But no Horny Draco?"

"Nope. He said he's not the Draco I think he is. But right now I can't even figure out what I really think."

* * *

Draco was still in his boxers when Hermione and Ginny emerged.

"Bye," Ginny said and left.

"Had fun with your girlfriend?"

Hermione wasn't exactly sure how he meant that, so she settled for saying, "we talked."

"That's nice." He returned to reading the book. Well, maybe not now that Hermione had taken a seat next to him.

"Well, I just wanted to say good night, so…good night." Hermione rose and had just placed her foot on the first step when Draco said: "Leaving so soon?"

She stopped and turned back around.

"It's still relatively early," he said rising from the couch and walking over to her.

"Well, I've got a bit of work to do," she said.

"I do too." He moved closer until he was standing about a foot away.

"Oh."

"Hermione?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"For what?"

"Listening to me. And believing me."

"Oh. Anytime." She smiled.

"Hug?"

"Ok."

She slipped her arms around her torso as he pulled her towards him. For a moment, they just stood there, her head against her chest. She found it was rather enjoyable, that she enjoyed the warmth of his body, and the gentle but firm grip of his arms. _I should probably let go, though_. He was rubbing pleasant circles into her back. _Well, that's kind of nice,_ she thought, and let him continue. He pulled her even closer, if that were possible, until she could feel something in his boxers pushing against her. And she knew what that was. She looked up and made to pull away.

"Draco—" she managed to get out just before his lips crashed down on hers.

Hermione had no time to react before Draco backed her into the wall and his hands moved to grasp her sides. Once again all thought flew from her mind as he kissed her deeply and touched his fingers to her skin. He slowly began to massage her tongue with his own and surprised herself by letting out a tiny moan. Draco stopped for breath, then moved his lips back down to her neck and began dragging his tongue across her skin.

"Wait wait, we can't do this," she said even as she felt another moan rising from her throat.

"Why not—don't you like it?" he whispered into her ear.

Hermione's insides melted at the heat of his breath at her ear, and she sighed.

"I do, but…" she managed to breathe out.

"Don't worry, I promise you can trust me, Hermione. Really. Ok?"

She nodded just barely, but really her attention was arrested by the pleasant tingles she felt every time his breath fell on her neck. She inhaled slowly as he slid her body down the wall. He stopped when her rear reached the floor, and told her to relax her legs. She complied and he placed his knee on either side of her, returning his mouth to her neck

Draco's hands moved down to her thighs, then slid up her skirt as Hermione grasped his hair. One hand moved to her rear end to support her as the other fingered her lacy underwear. He slipped his finger under the fabric and tugged the waistband down until it had satisfactorily exposed the area it was designed to cover.

He was almost in disbelief that she was letting it happen. Draco wanted to take her right there, but maybe it was a better idea to move slowly. And then, without warning, he moved his index finger to her entrance and swiftly flicked up some of her moisture. She opened her eyes and watched him place his finger in his mouth. He stared back at her with lust-filled eyes as he removed his finger and repositioned it at her entrance. He repeated his actions, never breaking the gaze between them.

His fingers flew down to her entrance once again, but this time instead of coming up, he pushed into her and was rewarded with the sharp exhalation she made when he did.

The desire to have her had only increased at the excited breaths she could not help but release. He should be gentle, and not push her too much, but the soft gasps that escaped her were too much to handle. It was so hard to resist his baser instincts…

"Draco…Stop…" she moaned, and he removed his finger.

"Does it hurt?" he asked, slightly worried. She shook her head and pushed his hands away, trying to stand.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

When she had finally regained her breath and was standing, she opened her eyes. "The same thing that was wrong last time."

"Which was…"

"I don't know, ok! I just can't do that with you…"

Draco studied her quietly. She was pulling her underwear back up and trying to smooth her shirt down, but failed; she looked hopelessly rumpled. And completely out of the mood, which was completely the opposite of how Draco felt.

"What is your problem!" he yelled, making her flinch.

"What?"

"Why the hell do you keep doing this?"

"Draco…"

"You are one big slut, you know."

Hermione said nothing, just stared as he continued.

"You only want to go far enough to please yourself, and then just leave."

"That's not—"

"Fuck it, Granger! _I'm_ leaving," he said, and then stormed up his own staircase.

_Why do I keep doing this? _Hermione asked herself. With great effort, she finally got herself into her room and into the shower. She stepped in, and then out a half hour later, all the while replaying the scene in her head and wondering how things had progressed so quickly. She changed into a fluffy robe, then walked down to the common room fire. Most likely, Draco wouldn't be emerging anytime soon, and so she picked up a book to read.

She was soon interrupted by a series of dulled noises coming from Draco's room. Sighing, she stood up and mounted his staircase. She'd have to apologize to him sooner or later anyway. Even if she hadn't figured anything out, she might as well be the bigger person in this situation.

His portrait was open. _Weird, _she thought, and stepped inside, heading towards his room.

"Oh gods, Draco!"

_What the hell?_ Hermione turned the corner and was shocked to see Draco naked, covering the also naked body a girl.

"Oh gods!" Hermione said, covering her eyes.

Draco heard another prayer to heaven that wasn't coming from the girl underneath him. He turned around to see Hermione standing in the room, shielding her eyes from his naked backside.

"Granger!" he yelled in surprise. "What the hell are you doing here!"

"I don't know," she said, still covering her eyes. She turned and ran out, still covering her eyes, amazingly not bumping into anything.

_Shit, she wasn't supposed to see that._ Draco rolled onto his back and covered his eyes, trying to think. The stupid Hufflepuff beside him had probably forgotten to close the door…

"Draco, don't worry about it."

"What?"

"You don't have to let her ruin it. I can…"

"Get out."

"What?"

"You heard me. Get out."

"Draco!"

"Now," he said and pushed her off the bed.

She began picking her clothes off the floor and slipped on her drawers.

"Go do that somewhere else. Leave now," he said.

"Fine." She pulled the sheets off the bed.

"Make sure to leave that here before you go."

"Bastard." The girl stalked off.

"I know," he said when she'd left the room.


	9. More Than One Mistake

**More Than One Mistake**

Hermione sat in the common room trying to figure out what the hell had just happened. Suddenly, the Hufflepuff named Samantha came down the stairs covered in Draco's sheets. She eyed Hermione guardedly when she spotted her.

"Leaving so soon?" Hermione asked.

"He kicked me out." Hermione didn't reply. "Is there anywhere I can put my clothes back on?" Samantha asked.

Hermione pointed. "Behind the bookshelf."

"Thanks."

In a minute, Samantha had dressed. She scurried out of the dorm as quickly as she could.

Draco waited five minutes after the Hufflepuff left his room. He walked downstairs to retrieve his sheets and did not realize that Hermione was there.

"Nice to know you haven't stopped shagging for me," she said. Draco looked up at the sound of her voice.

"Well, why should I?" he said coolly.

"I seem to remember you saying that you wouldn't."

"I said I wouldn't shag you. And I haven't."

"That still didn't stop you from trying."

"That is entirely your fault—"

"How the hell is it my fault!" she yelled.

"Why'd you kiss me back?" he said accusingly.

"Why'd you kiss me in the first place? Did you think it was ok? Did you think that meant I wanted to 'shag'?"

"You didn't do anything to stop me!"

"I didn't think you'd stick you hand down my knickers! Gods, it really is all you think about! And then when you didn't get it from me, you go somewhere else."

"That's not how it was."

"Don't lie," she said, waving her hands in exasperation. Then she stopped, because she felt ridiculous. Draco was holding the sheets in his hands and giving her a deceivingly innocent look. "You know what, go ahead. Go ahead and say that sex isn't all you care about."

"It's not."

"Yeah right! Then why were you with someone minutes after you couldn't shag me?"

"It was because of you!"

"Don't blame you horniness on me."

"No. You don't understand. It's because you are in my head," he pointed to it, "because I couldn't stop thinking about you."

"Wow. That's sweet," she said sarcastically. "So you thought you'd go shag elsewhere so you wouldn't have to think of shagging me. That makes it so much better."

"You know what, Hermione? You can't keep doing this. I told you the offer still stood. And you didn't stop me. So what did you expect me to think?"

"I expected you to remember that I didn't want to do that."

"Then stop playing games. It's not even about the sex anymore. This is about us. I thought you wanted me like I wanted you, but I guess that's not true."

"And how would that be, Draco? Naked? Wet? With my legs spread so that you can—"

"No. That's not what I mean—"

"I know exactly what you mean, and I don't want to hear it. Don't think you can sweet-talk your way into my underwear. Maybe some parts of you aren't completely rotten, but you're still not very much different from the person you pretend to be. And definitely don't think for one second that you're going to get any lies past me."

Hermione took a deep breath. "I'm not stupid, Draco. I know exactly how you work. Do you not realize that every female here, including me, knows every single dirty detail of your sex life and how you operate with women? I know you're just trying to add me to your list of conquests. And it's not going to happen. So save it for someone who actually wants to fuck." She spat the last words as she stood and glared at him. "You disgust me." Hermione walked over to her staircase and ascended without another glance back at Draco.

* * *

'_I can't believe him' _was the first thought on Hermione's mind when she woke up the next morning. _I really can't believe him. _Hermione groaned and rolled out of bed, then walked into the bathroom. She vaguely imagined that Draco on the other side of the wall, and hurried in showering and leaving the bathroom. Hermione mumbled to herself for the duration of her shower. The warm water had done nothing in the way of calming her down, and now she was going to have to go to class and see the exact cause of her annoyance.

She hoped that Draco wasn't going to be lingering anywhere around the dorm when she left. Luckily for Hermione, it seemed that he was already gone when she entered the common room. She left the dorm and went to the Great Hall for breakfast.

"Hey Hermione," Ginny said when Hermione sat down. "What's wrong?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Well, you don't look too alive right now. Did you just not get enough sleep?"

"Probably," Hermione said. "But that's not all of it. You will not believe what happened yesterday…I swear, I don't think I can take living with Draco for very much longer."

"Did he do something to you?" Ron asked.

"Not really…I just…he's just unbearable. And psychopathic."

"Are you sure he didn't do anything?" Harry asked.

"Nothing out of the ordinary…" Hermione turned back to her food and tried not to let her eyes wander over to the Slytherin table.

"Hermione, you're a really bad liar," Ginny whispered.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, because they're guys they're clueless, but _I _know something happened."

"I don't think it's a good idea to discuss it here…"

"We won't. Just tell me really quickly. What did Draco do?"

Hermione sighed. "A lot of things." She looked around and lowered her voice. "So we kind of…you know…again."

"Last time you didn't even actually end up shagging."

"And we didn't this time either. But he tried, and then got really mad when I stopped him. I went to go take a shower, and I came back out, and he was having sex with another girl!"

"What! In the common room?"

"Nope. They were making so much noise that I went to check his room, and saw them…"

"You caught them? And how did that go?" Ginny said in an amused voice.

"Not funny. I left, and then apparently he kicked her out and came down the common room while I was still there. Then he tried to feed me some bullcrap about having done it because of me." Hermione looked at her watch and sighed again. "Well, we've got to go to class now. Come on Ron, Harry." She stood, then bent over and whispered in Ginny's ear. "I'll tell you more later."

The trio walked to Potions and took their respective seats around the room. Hermione tried not to look at Draco as the class began, and stood up to get the ingredients as soon as they appeared on the board. She sat back down and added them to the cauldron without any help from him. Hermione was about to place the ladle inside when Draco took it from her hands.

"I think I can do that," he said placing the ladle in the cauldron. "This does count as my grade too."

Hermione fought the urge to tell him off and instead ignored him. After a while, she dared a peek at his face. He was stirring with a very intense glare of which the potion was the unfortunate recipient, and seemed to be oblivious to everything else that was going on around him.

_Why is he angry?_ Hermione thought. _He's not the one who was violated multiple times last night…_

After a while, Draco removed the ladle, stood up, and looked inside the cauldron. He seemed to be satisfied with how the potion looked, and sat back down. The two sat in silence until Snape walked past their cauldron.

"You two are done?" the professor asked. He looked inside their cauldron. "Then what is wrong with your potion?"

"Perhaps the ingredients, professor? Maybe Miss Granger missed a few," Draco said.

"Did you miss an ingredient, Miss Granger?" Professor Snape asked.

"I don't think so, professor. Maybe," she suggested, "it was stirred for too long."

"Then why didn't you stop after the five minutes instructed?"

"Oh, I wasn't stirring, professor."

Snape eyed Draco in surprise. "Mister Malfoy?"

"Well, it's possible that I did go over the limit…" Draco said.

The professor frowned, and pulled a vial of clear liquid out of his robes. He opened it and poured one drop into their cauldron. "Start over," he said, "and this time, stir for only five minutes."

Snape walked away from their bench and stood in front of his desk. "Do my instructions mean nothing to you?" he said to the class. "Do you know how many fatal accidents have occurred because potion instructions have not been followed to the letter? Do not stir for a longer or shorter period of time than instructed. Ever." Snape walked back over to the two Heads. "Do not think that you will always have someone to reverse the mistakes you've made. This is one time, and one time only. Do you understand?"

"Yes, professor," the pair said, and Snape walked away.

Hermione waited a moment before she spoke. "How dare you try and get me in trouble for _your_ mistake!" she whispered angrily.

Draco finally turned to face her. "I wasn't trying to blame you. You just didn't seem like you were sure of yourself when you were putting the ingredients into the cauldron…"

"Whatever, you arse. Try that again and I'll hex you—" Hermione began, then the bell rang.

"Everyone hand in your potions now!" the professor said.

"I'll do it," Hermione said. She took a vial and placed a sample of their potion inside, then walked quickly up to Snape's desk, then left the classroom as soon as she placed the potion on his desk.


	10. Arguments and Things

**Arguments and Things**

Draco didn't know why Hermione was so angry. _She's the one who's messing around, _he thought. He stood up from his seat and walked out of the class, deep in thought of how exactly he was going to take out his frustration this time. He certainly wasn't going to be able to have any more noisy shags like the one last night. Hermione had seen to ruining his taste for that. And how dare she tell him that every girl in Hogwarts thought he was a man-whore? Even if it was true, they all still wanted him…

Draco's thoughts were interrupted by the sudden appearance of a wall in his path; or, rather, Harry's chest. Draco sighed; he wasn't in the mood to be annoyed today, even accidentally.

"Potter, get out of my way," Draco slowly said.

"Umm, no." Harry gave him an exceptionally cold glare and made no move to do what he said.

"We just want to talk to you for a bit, Malfoy," Ron said, suddenly appearing from behind Draco's back.

Draco looked only mildly surprised at Ron's appearance. "What is this, a shakedown?" He laughed harshly. "You guys are going to have to try a little harder if you want to scare me."

"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry said. "All you're going to do now is listen."

"Am I?"

"Do you want me to ensure that you do?" Harry asked.

"We don't really want to hurt you, but if you leave us no choice…" Ron said. "We just want to talk for a bit."

Draco rolled his eyes again. "Well I don't. Excuse me," he said and tried to get past them. Ron grabbed the collar of his robes and shoved him back against a wall.

"Why don't you just listen for a second?" Ron said. Draco glared at him and said nothing.

"So, as we were saying…We know that you did something to Hermione," Harry began.

"Oh really?" Draco tried to resist the urge to smile, but couldn't. _I wonder how much detail she gave them…_

"What's so funny, Malfoy?"

"Oh, nothing," he said. "Continue."

"We don't like you, ok?" Harry said.

"The feeling's mutual, I assure you."

"But Hermione has to put up with you for the rest of the year, and that means that we do too. She told us about your agreement on the train, so we're going to attempt to be civil. But if you do anything to her, we will seriously hurt you," Ron said, releasing his grip on Draco's robes.

"Ok, guys, back up." Draco smoothed his collar and pushed them both back a step. "Don't ever touch my robes again. Or else I will you hurt you."

"I'm sorry," Ron said without even attempting to feign sincerity. "But we really wanted to have this conversation with you. Just don't do anything that will make us notice you."

"I don't know what you did to Hermione, but make sure she has nothing to complain about next time," Harry said.

"So she didn't even tell you anything?" Draco laughed. "Well, then, what are you two gits even trying to say? Now," he said, pushing them both backwards again and gesturing towards the wand in his robes, "if you ever threaten me again, I won't be so gracious next time. And I suggest you get to class, because you're going to be late." Draco glared at both of them before he turned away. "And oh yes, twenty points from Gryffindor for assaulting the Head Boy," he said as he walked down the hallway.

* * *

Draco was waiting for Hermione in their common room that same day when she came back from dinner.

"Granger, can we talk for just a bit?" he said when she came in through the portrait.

"No…" Hermione began walking over to her staircase.

"I'm serious, Hermione. I actually have something I want to tell you."

Hermione groaned and turned around. "Fine." She took a seat on a couch. "What is it that you just have to tell me?"

"Well, I had the immense pleasure of talking to your two cronies today…They actually had the nerve to put their hands on me. And you know what they told me? It was something along the lines of leaving you alone or receiving a beat-down. It was kind of amusing." Draco stood and walked over to where Hermione sat. "Seriously though, Granger, don't ever let that happen again. Because if Potty and Weasel ever come up to me again and threaten me, I will not hesitate to hurt them both."

"I didn't tell them to do that."

"I don't care…And where do you get off complaining to them in the first place when everything that happened was your fault?"

"Everything that happened wasn't my fault, Draco. Maybe if you weren't so presumptuous I wouldn't have anything to say—"

"Maybe if you hadn't led me on I wouldn't have done anything—"

"Maybe if you had listened to me the first time I said I wasn't interested you wouldn't have gotten the wrong impression!" Hermione yelled, standing up.

"Oh. Yeah. I should've listened to you." Draco scoffed. "Listen to what? Do you know how often you've changed your mind in all the time we've known each other? You kissed me first! Or do you not remember that? Then you just run away without an explanation. And when I kissed you the second time you should've known what to expect. Yet you still kept going, and so I did too, until you changed your mind again. And ran away again. Don't you remember what I said to you on the train? And why would I feel any differently from then? Maybe you're the one who needs to listen."

Hermione laughed bitterly. "Are you even serious? Just because you can't control yourself I'm not allowed to be nice to you—"

"No. That's not it. I can control myself perfectly. But you can't, obviously," Draco said with a smirk.

"Ugh. Do you even believe any of what you're saying? Are you serious, Draco?" Hermione began to walk away, then stopped. "The fact of the matter is that you did what you did without even waiting to see if I was ok with it. And the time I kissed you, you tricked me into it. But you insist on trying to justify it all. I don't think that says that I'm the one who can't control my actions."

He laughed. "I'm controlling myself right now from pinning you to that couch and shagging you senseless. Not that I would mind, but since I'm doing it for you…"

She looked properly stunned at that revelation, he gleefully noted. But she quickly shook away the surprised expression on her face and narrowed her eyes at him again.

"So you're not going to do that?" she asked.

"Right."

"Because you can control yourself?"

"Exactly. Why do you assume so much, Hermione? And especially about me? You obviously haven't been listening to anything I told you, and you don't know me at all, even if you think you do. Maybe if you hadn't made so many assumptions on what was going to happen, you wouldn't be in this situation right now." Draco turned away. "I'm leaving. And remember: keep your stupid little friends away from me, because I can and will give them a reason to hunt me down." With that, Draco mounted his staircase and disappeared.


	11. No Stopping

**No Stopping**

That same night, Hermione was on patrol around the Gryffindor tower. She entered the common room to see it packed with people who seemed to have no intentions of going to sleep anytime soon.

"Hey guys, I suggest you start heading to bed soon," she said.

"Aww, Hermione, aren't you still one of us?" Ginny asked from her seat on a couch.

"Of course. But I still have to enforce the rules as Head Girl."

"Yeah yeah yeah…come sit down."

Hermione complied and sat on the arm of Ginny's chair. "Hey, have you seen either Ron or Harry?"

"They're probably in bed by now. Why?"

"Umm…I'll tell you later, ok?" Hermione stood up and walked off before Ginny could ask any more questions.

Hermione entered the boys' Gryffindor dormitory to find Ron tucking himself into bed, and Harry just emerging from the bathroom. She walked over to Ron's bed and sat down.

"Hermione, you're kind of on my legs…"

"Sorry." She moved over a bit. "Harry, come over here."

Harry walked over and sat down on another bed. "What's up, Hermione?"

"Ok." She looked at them both before she spoke. "Draco told me about what you guys did…I can't believe you!"

Harry and Ron looked at each other.

"Look, Hermione," Ron began, "we know that he's been giving you some trouble lately. And we don't want him to think that he can get away with it. So we told him that if he bothered you again we'd hurt him."

"Which we will. In any case, why didn't you say anything to us? We had to overhear your conversation with Ginny," Harry said.

"Probably to avoid the exact thing that happened." Hermione sighed. "Guys, I think it's noble and all that you're trying to protect me, but I really don't need you to."

"That's what you say, Hermione. But this is Malfoy we're talking about. Who knows what he has up his sleeve?"

"What did he do to you anyway?" Ron asked.

"Nothing, Ron, he's just…very difficult to get along with." Hermione sighed. "But I intend to change that. I don't know why there have been any problems, but I think I'm partly to blame, too. So _I'm_ going to talk to him. Not you guys," she said, standing. "Now I think it's about time for me to get back to my own dorm..."

"Well, ok…" Ron frowned.

"You know, you've got to start hanging out here more," Harry said. "You spending all your time in the same dorm as Malfoy makes me think there's something going on," he joked.

Hermione laughed nervously. "Oh…Of course not. There's just a lot of work to this Head business." She walked over to the entrance. "I'll see you guys later," she said, and left.

There were still plenty of Gryffindors in the common room when Hermione reappeared. She considered telling everyone to go to bed, as it was well past curfew, but decided against it.

"You're leaving now, Hermione?" Ginny asked.

"Yeah…I'm kind of tired," Hermione replied.

"Well, ok…are you going to stop by anytime this week?"

"I don't know Ginny. I still have a bit of work to do. I'll be free the day of the dance, though."

"Well, then, maybe I can come over and help you get ready. You're going, right?"

"I suppose…"

"Don't look so depressed. I'll come over and dress you up and it'll be fun."

Hermione smiled. "Maybe it will."

"Ok. And we'll talk then?"

"Yeah." Hermione walked over to the portrait and opened it. "I'm going to go now…good night, guys," she said before closing the door behind her.

Hermione walked quickly back to her dormitory. About halfway along the corridor to the portrait she stopped, fancying she heard a noise somewhere off to her left.

"Granger, shouldn't you be inside the dorm by now?"

Hermione turned to see Draco leaning against the wall. "I could say the same for you," she said.

"I'm just coming back from patrol," he said.

"And so am I." Hermione continued down the hall, and Draco followed. "Actually, Draco, I wanted to have a little chat with you…"

"You know, all this talking between us isn't required."

"I know." Hermione stopped and said her password, then they both entered the dorm. Hermione closed the door behind Draco and turned to face him. "I was thinking that maybe we should call a truce."

Draco raised one eyebrow. "Really? A truce? Because we tried that already, and it didn't work too well."

There were many angry thoughts that came to mind when he said that, but Hermione wasn't going to argue the point at that moment. "I know, but I suggest we try again. The entire point of us getting along is so that we can do our Head duties properly, together. And we haven't done that."

Draco rubbed his chin as if contemplating what Hermione just said. "This is true."

"And we still haven't finished putting together everything for the Halloween Dance. I should probably put up a few more posters. And we still need to call the band and confirm that they're coming. I'd really just like to do that without arguing about who was right and who was wrong."

"Uh huh…I can't believe you haven't finished your work on the dance already."

Hermione glared at him. "I've been busy."

"Uh huh…well, I suppose a truce wouldn't be so bad."

"Great."

"Great," he repeated, his eyes still locked on her face, and she gave him a nervous smile. "Well, I'm off to bed now, so, good night…" Hermione spoke the password to the portrait and quickly scampered off to her room. She didn't trust herself alone with Draco anymore. And she trusted him even less. At any second he could pull her into his arms and ravish her. Even worse was her willingness in those situations. She had to admit that he did do amazing things to her body, even though her mind did not consent.

Her mind was the part of her that was supposed to put up the fight, but it insisted on failing her at the exact moments when she needed it. Every time Draco touched her she practically shivered in delight and any semblance of thought flew out the window. And even though she denied it, Hermione had, in retrospect, enjoyed every part of the experience, right down to the fact that for once, her mind wasn't capable of what she wanted it to do.

And yet still the circumstances were too bizarre for her to simply ignore. Draco Malfoy, not being the evil bastard she'd known for the past six years? And her, Hermione Granger, being involved with him? It was ludicrous, impossible. And yet she hoped that maybe it wasn't. Her mind often wandered off in daydreams of herself and Draco locked in a passionate embrace, kissing until they couldn't breathe and never stopping. And if they weren't daydreams then they were memories, and pleasant ones at that. Right up to the point where he'd go too far and the pleasantness would come to a screeching, ugly halt.

Well, then, she would take one of her daydreams to sleep. Selecting her favorite (and curiously, most used) fantasy from her store, Hermione snuggled into bed and promptly fell asleep.

* * *

"Hermione in the library. What a surprise."

Hermione looked up into silver eyes, barely suppressing a smile. She'd actually been in daydream mode again, but chose to do so in the library while pretending to read.

"Well," she said, "I do like it here."

"Of course you do. I came to tell you that I've taken care of the last preparations for the dance."

"That's good…"

Draco began to take a seat in the chair opposite her own, and Hermione took this as a sign to check her watch. It was almost closing time. From her limited view over his head of the rest of the library, she could see that most, if not all, of the other students had left. Damn. She'd chosen this secluded area for the purpose of daydreaming in solitude, but now it looked like it had her conveniently stuck in a place where she didn't want to be—alone with Draco. Even if she spent all her time engrossed in thoughts of him, she still had this urge to run away every time he approached her. It was a shame that the fantasy was so grossly different from the reality…

"I think I'm going to head off and do some homework," she said, rising from her seat. She reached for a book on the table and Draco placed his hand on her arms.

"Stay a while, Hermione. You're always running away it seems, every time I try to talk to you. I would think that a truce such as ours requires us to be friends…"

She sank defeated into her chair and removed her hand from his grasp. "I suppose it does."

"So why do you keep running away, Hermione?"

"I'm not."

"Really?" Draco bent forward and placed both his elbows on the table, propping his face up in between them. He said nothing more and watched her eyes.

Hermione tried but failed to break the intense hold his eyes had upon her. "I'm not running at all."

His eyes were rather silver, she noticed. They seemed to be reflecting what little light there was in the steadily darkening room. And they were still fixed on her. Almost disturbing, she thought, and definitely more intense than she'd ever been witness to. And now Hermione had the vague suspicion that he was putting some sort of spell on her, or trying to probe her mind…

"Ok." Draco reached to take the hand that was still lying on the desk, and Hermione flinched. He sighed and did not repeat the action. "Are you afraid of me?" he asked.

"Draco—"

"No, you are." He looked injured. "Why?"

"I'm not scared of you."

"But you flinched when I tried to touch you—do you think I'm going to hurt you or something?"

"Hurt me?" Hermione looked surprised at this question. "Not physically…"

A ghost of a smile flitted across his face. "Physically…"

Hermione didn't need to imagine what he was thinking as the word rolled off his tongue. He said it in such a way that she could practically see the direction in which his thoughts were heading.

"I would never hurt you physically," he thought aloud. "Physically," and now his gaze had returned to her face, "I could do wonderful things to you."

Hermione couldn't help it. She blushed, and only became redder as the intensity of his gaze increased.

"So why not?" he asked.

"You want to know?"

"Yes."

Hermione shifted her eyes in another direction, pretending to think. "Just because I don't think I can trust you. You or your roving libido, and your bunches of personalities too."

He didn't seem much surprised by this revelation. "So what?"

"So what? Draco, I'm not going to snog someone I can't trust."

"You did before."

Her cheeks reddened again at the remembrance of their latest run-in. "I don't plan on doing it again."

"I don't think all that matters. I think," he said, placing his elbows back on the table, "that I will not hurt you, or go farther than you want me to."

"And how can I be sure that you won't try and stick you hands past my knickers again?"

"Right now? Well…" he surveyed the little of the library that he could see, "though I would desperately like to do that, they do like it quiet in the library."

She caught his meaning immediately. "Right…"

Draco leaned forward and placed his face between his hands. "I know you want to kiss me, so just do it."

"And how do you know that?"

"Well, if I tasted half as good as you do, then I would want to kiss me too."

Hermione said nothing.

"Come on, Hermione…" Draco said, then fell silent.

Neither one spoke for a few moments. Hermione was still mesmerized by the positively frightening look in his eyes, as he begged her to do it but still managed to keep himself perfectly still.

And she couldn't resist. She leaned forward to meet him halfway and placed a kiss on her lips. Even if she wanted to pull away, Draco grabbed both of her arms, rising out of his seat and pulling her with him. And then he was standing and climbing over the table, still holding her in his grip, and pushing her back into the seat as he leaped over the scattered books and onto her chair. He took her into his arms and switched their places, positioning her so she faced him. He then proceeded to kiss every spot of her neck, and began running his hands all over her body.

"Draco…" Hermione breathed.

He immediately stopped. "Sorry," he mumbled into her skin. "We can go slower if you like."

"You said you wouldn't do anything I didn't want."

"And I won't. I promise. But you have to trust me, and if I do anything you don't want, you stop me, ok?"

"Ok."

And just like that his mouth went back to work. He kissed her deeply, stroking her hair as he plunged into the depths of her mouth. Hermione tried to match the movements of his tongue, but gave in almost immediately under his control. She sighed in response as he kissed her repeatedly, and then began to slow the frenzied moments of his mouth. He nibbled at her lip as he grabbed her rear end and shifted her again so that she was straddling him on the chair. His hands hungrily roved her body, and finally, his mouth moved away from hers and to her chin, then her forehead and cheeks, then her neck, placing kisses everywhere he touched.

Her legs encircled tightly around his midsection, he lifted her again and laid her onto the floor, placing the whole of his weight atop her. Her legs stayed wrapped around him as his hands were again free to roam. He released her bottom and slowly ran his hands up the side of her body, then over her stomach, and back over the swell of her breasts.

"Do you want me to stop?" he spoke into her ear.

"No."

Well, that was good, he thought as he slowly massaged her breast with his hand. He teased the other, grazing the nipple with his thumb and sighing with pleasure as she rubbed against him.

Draco had been right. It did feel good. And at that moment she considered telling him to forget ever stopping. But no, that probably wasn't the best idea. He whispered again asking her if she wanted to stop, and she shook her head, no, and sighed in pleasure as he recommenced his touches to her body. Pressed this close to him, she could feel a familiar hardness pushing into her stomach, a thing that had scared her in the past. Well, she was still scared, but more importantly, thrilled to no end at the absolute pleasure his arousal gave her. She grinded her body into his, willing him to continue without any more questions. Draco let out his first groan for the exercise, a fact that pleased her even more than his growing excited state.

And then suddenly he was placing her on the floor and was climbing off her. She wondered at why he wasn't pressing against her anymore. Hermione opened her eyes to see Draco trying to work his expression into one that wasn't so expressive of painful desire.

"Draco? What's wrong?"

He was standing, looking down at her, and then he sighed.

"Not you, not you. I just—have to stop myself, Hermione. Before I do something you don't want, ok?" He ran a hand through his hair. "I hope it was as enjoyable for you as it was for me." She didn't respond, and so Draco abruptly turned around and headed down the aisle and out of the library.

Hermione sat on the floor, stunned, for another few moments before she came to her senses and stood up. She quickly gathered her books and left the library, following in his footsteps back to their dorm.

Truth be told, Draco had no desire to stop himself that night. Who cared about noise in the library anyway? And why he'd stopped was not as much of a mystery to him as how. Because he knew why: going even a little too far that night would have guaranteed that he'd never touch her again. But he had to question the sagaciousness of that decision; what, really, was the point?

She'd very obviously been offended, he realized at breakfast the next day. Their eyes had met for a brief second, and in her expression he could see nothing but unadulterated anger; then she'd turned away, and that was that. To top it off, Harry and Ron had picked that same day to begin trailing her like a pair of canine bodyguards—even more demonstrative, it seemed, of her desire to keep him away from her. But they couldn't have possibly known; no, she would never tell them, that much Draco knew, about her experiences with their least favorite Slytherin. Nonetheless they glared at him with a new intensity whenever he walked past them. Hermione, on the other hand, never looked at him; not in class, not at meals, and he never saw her anywhere else. She avoided him like the plague, and in turn, he was careful not to betray that no matter what, his eyes were on her constantly.

So really, he asked himself as he watched her walk out of the Hall, Harry and Ron on either side of her, what had been the point?


	12. The Halloween Dance

**The Halloween Dance**

Finally the Halloween Dance had arrived.

"So who's your date?" Ginny asked as she and Hermione entered the Head Girl's bedroom.

"I don't have one," Hermione replied.

"You mean you turned down every guy who asked?"

"Nobody asked. I told you no one likes me."

"Oh please. I hope you don't really believe that. They're just all too intimidated by you."

"Yeah right…Let's just get this over with."

"Alright," Ginny said excitedly and immediately began conjuring make-up and hair products.

"Whoa—what is all this?"

"Just a few things for your face and hair."

Hermione picked up a bottle. "Ginny, I can't even tell what this one does."

"Oh, that's for body and bounce, but we won't be needing that."

Hermione groaned but said nothing.

"Ok, first your costume," Ginny said, pointing at Hermione, and her clothing changed from a t-shirt and a pair of jeans to a black dress.

"Ginny, what the hell!"

"It's your costume."

"It covers less than a towel would."

"It'll be fine."

"What if the top comes down?"

Ginny pointed at the strapless top and applied a spell. "There you go…" she said approvingly. "Oh, just some advice…if you happen to drop something, you should probably have someone else pick it up. But I suppose you can sit down just fine."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I cannot believe I'm letting you do this to me."

Ginny ignored her and conjured a pair of shoes that laced up to the middle of her calf.

"I look like a prostitute, Ginny."

"No, you look sexy. Now for your hair."

"Let's leave my hair alone."

"No, it has to be perfectly straight," Ginny said as she pointed her wand at Hermione's head.

Hermione touched her head. "That was pointless, Ginny."

"Almost. Now for make-up." Ginny applied heavy mascara and eyeliner. Hermione looked in the mirror when she finished.

"Ginny, now I really look like a prostitute."

"Be quiet." Ginny pointed a paling spell at Hermione's cheeks, and applied dark make-up under her eyes.

"Ok, now I look like a sick, tired prostitute."

"Open your mouth," Ginny ordered. She pointed at Hermione's teeth and two fangs grew quickly into place. "All right!" Ginny exclaimed. "Now go look."

Hermione walked up to the full-length mirror and stared.

"I'm wearing robes over this," she said.

"You can wear a cape if you want. But you're not keeping it on."

"Whatever."

"Ok, I've got to run now and get myself ready. See you at the dance," Ginny said and disappeared from the room.

Grabbing the cape Ginny left on her bed, Hermione slowly made her way downstairs and stopped at the bottom. Standing in the common room was an angel. Or was it just Draco?

"Did I die?" she asked the air.

"And go to heaven? Yes," Draco smirked.

No, it wasn't an angel, just Draco in an angel's costume. Hermione approached for a better view. Draco had opted for the warrior look. His shiny silver armor matched his eyes, and he wore a sword at his side. He extended his arm and Hermione took it cautiously.

"Umm…"

"Well, you are the Head Girl and I'm the Head Boy. It's only appropriate we go together."

"Ok…"

They walked to the exit and quickly walked to the Great Hall, where the dance was already in full swing.

"Care to dance, Hermione?" Draco asked.

"Sure…"

They danced for two songs, and then a male Hufflepuff came over and cut in. Then two Ravenclaws. And then another Hufflepuff. Soon, there seemed to be a line forming to wait for a dance with Hermione.

Finally, Draco pulled her away. Giving an icy glare to any guy who was too close, he led her to the middle of the floor for another dance. Then, Harry and Ron came over.

"Wow, Hermione!" Ron said.

"You look amazing!" Harry agreed.

Draco glared at them. "If you want to dance, you'll have to come back later," he said.

"Is Malfoy your date?" Ron asked, his eyes narrowing.

"The Heads must appear together," Draco simply stated.

"Um, I'll see you guys later," Hermione said as she was whisked away to another part of the floor.

"You know, we actually aren't required to be here together," Draco said.

"Oh…" Hermione looked up into his eyes. "Then thanks. I didn't have a date."

"Yet every guy and his best friend wanted to dance with you."

"I could say the same thing about you and every girl."

"Well, those girls don't matter," Draco said. "Hey, do you want to take a break?" he leaned in and whispered in her ear.

"Alright…"

Still holding her hand, Draco led her outside to the gardens, and then they sat down on a stone bench. She raised her eyes to his face; he was giving her that look again.

"Dra—"

"Hermione, I'm really sorry," Draco said, cutting her off. "I know I acted kind of weirdly the last time we-we-"

She said nothing but took back her hand and waited for him to continue.

"You never gave me the chance to apologize."

Hermione frowned. "And why would I do that? So that you'd think it was ok again?"

"Well, no…but I'd think you'd want an apology."

"That would be unnecessary. The fact of the matter is that you said I could trust you," she pointed at his chest, "and you just ran away, like you said I was doing—but I didn't—but you did and then you just expect me to take it and probably come back for more—"

"Ok, hold on there." Draco rose from his seat next to her. "This is a stupid argument that we've already had."

"I agree, so let's not do any repeats."

"Not even the one of our meeting in the library?"

Hermione sighed and looked up at him. She couldn't help but smile at the positively childlike pout on his face. But of course his eyes said something else. His eyes said that he thought he was going to get what he wanted.

"Don't give me that look, Malfoy."

"Ah, but you like this look, don't you?" Hermione said nothing. "Be honest," he said, pulling her into his arms.

"Wait, Draco, just—" She couldn't look at his face so she cast her eyes up to the sky. "Don't."

"Why not?" he whispered into her ear. "Give me one good reason and I'll stop."

"I'll give you plenty."

"Any new ones?"

No response.

"Well, then," he said, turning her to face him, "I guess I win."

Draco pressed her lips to his and guided Hermione back to the bench. She fell onto the seat and he went with her, supporting her head and leaning her back into the wall. Their tongues met and danced until they both could hardly breathe. Draco paused for just a moment, then leaned back in. He licked her lips for reentrance, forcefully pushing his tongue in when she complied. Hermione reached up and grasped his hair, pulling him closer to her.

"So you do like this," he said.

"Of course," Hermione said with a smile, "who could resist Draco Malfoy?"


	13. After the Dance

**After the Dance**

"Hey Harry, have you seen Hermione?" Ron asked. "I want to get that dance now."

"Haven't seen her," Harry responded.

"Well, I'm going to look for her."

"Wait, I'll come with you."

The two boys began scanning the Hall for Hermione. After looking for minutes without finding her, they stopped.

"I think she's gone," Harry said.

"Yeah…and so is Malfoy…"

"Ok, we've definitely got to find her."

"Neville!" Ron said, spotting the boy and pulling him aside.

"Have you seen Hermione or Malfoy?"

Neville pointed in the direction of the gardens and the two boys immediately headed off.

"I swear, if he lays one hand on her…"

"I'm going to kick his ass anyway."

Harry and Ron turned the corner and Harry's voice trailed off. Sitting in plain view was Draco, doing strangely explicit things to the girl underneath him who seemed to be—Hermione?

"What the hell!" Harry yelled.

Draco turned around and saw Harry and Ron with matching expressions of horror on their face. He sighed and sat up.

"Get your slimy hands off her!" Ron yelled, and Draco reluctantly slid his hand out of Hermione's dress and sat on the bench beside her.

"What do you two want?" Draco asked calmly, though he was far from it.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Ron said.

"Hermione, what the hell is going on?" Harry asked.

"Were you kissing this git?"

"Of course she was. And you two are the gits," Draco said.

"Say another word and I'll kick your ass…" Harry said angrily.

"Don't make useless threats, Potter. You don't want another scar. And Weasley," Draco said as Ron moved forward, "don't bother. Your family will go bankrupt trying to pay the hospital bills."

Ron lunged for him and Harry grabbed his arms, just barely holding him back.

"Not right now, Ron," Harry said. The redhead eventually stopped struggling. "Hermione, let's go."

"I think she'll leave when she wants to," Draco said.

"Look Malfoy, I wasn't talking to you. Hermione, let's go."

"I don't care if you were talking to me."

"I will bash your face in if you say one more—"

"Look guys, will you just stop!" Hermione yelled, standing up. "I'm leaving." She rushed out of the gardens, leaving the three very bewildered boys in her wake.

"Hey Hermione, what's wrong?" Ginny asked as Hermione tried to speed-walk past her in the Hall.

"Everything. Look, I'd stop to talk, but I just need to get back to my dorm."

"Can I come with?"

"Yeah, of course." The two girls quickly went back to Hermione's room, where she promptly collapsed on the bed and pulled the sheets over herself.

"Hermione?"

"Ugh. I can't believe what just happened."

"What?"

"I kissed Draco."

"Big surprise."

"And then Harry and Ron saw me."

"So what?"

"Then they started yelling and Draco started yelling."

"Well, guys are stupid."

"Then they started yelling at me. So I left." Hermione's head emerged from the sheets. "How am I going to explain this?"

"You don't have to explain anything to them."

"Yes, I do. Harry's going to ask. And Ron won't leave me alone about this. Or Draco," Hermione said as she sank below the sheets. She was silent for a while.

"Hermione?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you want me to leave?"

"No, Ginny, but…"

"It's ok, I'll go. Let me know if you need anything."

"Thanks. I'll see you later."

Ginny left the room and went down the stairs. Just as she was closing the portrait, she saw Harry and Ron running towards her.

"Wait, don't close it," Ron said.

"Is she in there?" Harry asked.

"Where else would she be?" Ginny didn't release the door and remained in front of them, blocking the entrance. "You'd better fix whatever you did," she said before she moved and walked away.

Ron grabbed the portrait and Harry stepped inside. They headed towards the red carpeted staircase and went up the stairs.

"Hermione?"

Inside, Hermione was still hiding underneath her sheets when she heard someone call her name. She got up and walked over to the door.

"Yeah?" she called out.

"It's Harry and Ron. We need to talk."

_So soon?_ She'd thought they would have taken the hint and left her alone at least for tonight. Reluctantly she opened the door and let them inside.

"What do you want?" she asked, taking a seat on the floor. Harry and Ron followed suit.

* * *

Draco was quite angered that Harry and Ron had managed to ruin the night for him. He promised himself that the next time he saw the two he would give them the worst beat-down ever. But at the moment finding Hermione was slightly more important. He headed in the direction of the dorm, hoping that she would be there ready continue where they'd left off. Just as he was about to pull the spear belonging to the suit of armor, the staircase appeared and Ginny was walking down it.

"Hey, is Hermione in there?"

Why did they always ask that? "Of course she is. But—"

Draco didn't bother to stay and listen to what the redhead had to say. He quickly entered the dorm and walked over to Hermione's staircase. Seeing the door was slightly open, he was about to walk in when he heard Hermione's voice.

"Look guys, he's just a dumb git."

"Then why were you kissing him?" another voice asked.

"I hadn't planned on it…"

_Wait, what? She knew exactly what she was doing…_Draco thought. He remained outside to continue listening to what was being said.

"So why didn't you stop him?"

"I wasn't thinking, ok! Just—"

"That's not what it looked like…"

"Don't be ridiculous. Malfoy is still a git. A horny git. There's nothing between us."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really. He's still the same cruel, cold-hearted bastard we've all come to know and love to hate."

There was silence.

"So there's nothing going on?"

"Nothing at all. Maybe I made the mistake of letting my guard down around him, but it's not going to happen again."

Hermione began asking them about their experience at the dance, quickly changing the subject. Draco, outside, stared at the portrait in disbelief of what he had just heard. Then after a minute, he turned and walked downstairs to the common room. He lay down on the couch and closed his eyes, trying to think.

_So that's what she really thinks of me. And I thought she'd really believed me._

A minute later, Harry and Ron appeared in the common room. They headed for the exit without noticing Draco lying on the couch. Shortly after, Hermione followed and walked over to Draco's staircase.

"It's nice to know that you think I'm a dumb git."

Hermione stopped and turned around. Draco was now sitting up on the couch, and an unreadable expression, one she hadn't seen in a long time, was present on his face.

"What?"

"Yeah, it's nice to know that you think I'm a cruel, cold-hearted bastard. And it's true, you know," Draco said, rising from the couch. He walked over to his staircase where Hermione was still standing. "Except for the dumb git part."

"Wait, Draco, what you heard, I didn't mean—"

"Save it, mudblood." He mounted the staircase and entered his bedroom, slamming the door behind him.

_Damn it, what did I just do?_ Hermione thought. She also climbed Draco's staircase.

"Draco?"

"Go away. I don't want to hear what you think you need to say."

"Look, I didn't really mean what I said."

She could hear him sigh through the portrait. "Even though I'm an evil bastard, I have to say that I do pride myself on being honest. You, however, do not, and should work on that. I suggest you go to bed now."

"Draco, I'm not going anywhere until we talk about this."

"Whatever. I'm not going to listen." She could hear him as he applied a soundproofing spell to his room.

"Maybe you should leave, dearie," the portrait on the door said.

"I said I wasn't going, and I'm not," Hermione said and sank to the ground. She leaned against a wall and tried to think.

"I'm stupid."

"Young lady, would you mind being quiet?" the portrait asked.

"Sorry."

_Maybe you shouldn't have lied in the first place, _her conscience stated.

"What else could I do?" she whispered. "If I'd told them I actually enjoyed it, they would've strangled me."

_Ok. So now here you are. I guess things went off as expected…_

"Well, if he hadn't heard me…"

_You'd have to keep lying to Harry and Ron?_

"I am going to tell everybody the truth eventually."

_Eventually. That's good._

"Ugh. Why am I talking to myself?"

"That's what I want to know," the portrait said.

"Fine, but I'm not going anywhere." Hermione said nothing more for a long time. Then, just before she drifted off to sleep, a mumble escaped her lips. "Eventually…" she said, and closed her eyes.


	14. Acceptance

**Acceptance**

That was where Draco found her the next morning. Emerging from his room, he nearly tripped over something and looked down to see a pair of legs blocking his way.

"Hmm; didn't really think she was going to stay here," Draco said.

"Maybe you should have been more forceful," the portrait said.

"Next time." Draco bent down and placed Hermione on his shoulder. Then he turned around and walked back into his bedroom. Placing her on the bed, he began to unlace her shoes and threw them on the floor. Then he moved her underneath the sheets. Hermione slightly stirred and pulled them up closer to her head. Draco decided against staying to watch her, and stood up. Closing the portrait door shut, he walked down the staircase and decided to go to brunch.

* * *

Hermione awoke about a half-hour after Draco had left.

_Green sheets? Where the hell am I?_ She bolted up and looked at the clock. 12:40. Brunch would be over in twenty minutes. Hermione threw off the covers and stood, then took two steps before she nearly tripped over something hard and large. On the floor were those stupid shoes she'd worn the night before. _I definitely didn't take these off. As a matter of fact, why am I even in Draco's room?_

She picked up the shoes and, bewildered, left as quickly as she could. Hermione practically ran to her room and into the bathroom for a shower.

When she finally entered the Great Hall all but a few people remained. But Ginny was still there. She slid over when Hermione sat down.

"Well?" Ginny asked.

"Well what?" Hermione retorted.

"What happened?"

"It's even worse now." Ginny raised an eyebrow. "So I wanted Harry and Ron to calm down and I told them I hadn't meant to be kissing Draco. Only Draco heard that and everything I said afterwards, when I was insulting him."

"Let me get this straight. You lied to Harry and Ron and somehow Draco managed to find out."

"I assume he's not talking to me now. I tried to explain, but he wouldn't listen."

"Uh huh…he stared at your usual spot while he was eating."

"So he was here?" Hermione put down her glass of cranberry juice. "Do you know where he went?"

"What do I look like to you?"

"I've got to go find him." Hermione stood.

"Take your toast with you."

"Whatever." Hermione picked up a slice of toast and left the Hall just as quickly as she'd come and decided to head for the library. She searched everywhere inside and there was no sign of Draco there.

By the time dinner rolled around, Hermione had searched every inch of the castle. She'd even gotten up the nerve to enter the Slytherin common room. Her excuse was that she needed the Head Boy for some Head business. A few of the Slytherins hissed as she spoke. One of them suggested he was off shagging in another dorm.

"I can't believe I haven't seen him all day. I searched everywhere," Hermione said as she played with her chicken.

"I'm sure he'll show up at dinner. Look, there he is," Ginny observed as Draco made his way over to the Slytherin table.

Draco forced himself not to look in Hermione's direction as he ate. Hermione, however, continued to gaze at him throughout the meal.

"Hey Hermione, stop staring. You're getting almost as bad as he is," Ginny said.

"Yeah yeah…you're right." Hermione looked glumly down at her food.

"Why don't you just catch him when he leaves?"

"I doubt he'll talk to me now. You should've seen him."

"Was he that angry?"

"That's the thing. He didn't sound angry at all. Not even when he called me mudblood."

"What!" Ginny put down her glass.

"Yeah, mudblood."

"Well, you know he didn't really mean that."

"Maybe not. But he definitely meant that he didn't want to talk to me."

"I doubt that."

"Yeah, well I don't." Hermione looked up. Draco was gone. "I've got to go, Ginny."

"Uh huh. Good luck. Just make him listen and you're set."

Hermione sped off to her dorm, hoping that Draco had actually headed there like she hoped.

When she entered, she went straight to his staircase and mounted the stairs. She raised her hand to knock on the door when a particularly loud moan came from inside his room.

_Oh gods, not another girl. _The moans steadily increased in frequency and volume until Hermione couldn't listen to any more. She rushed down the stairs and over to her own staircase.

Hermione stood at the foot of her bed for a full minute before she could even sit down on it and think. When she finally sat she could barely organize her thoughts, so she just lay there trying to figure out what to do next. Finally, she decided to change into a robe and her favorite fluffy slippers and then went down to the common room.

She approached the bookshelf and reached for the book of poems she still hadn't finished reading and settled onto a couch. She stared at the pages and tried to read, but none of it was sinking in. Finally she gave up.

_What am I even doing out here? _she asked herself.

_Waiting for Draco to appear, _her conscience answered.

"And why?" Hermione asked out loud. "So he can just insult me again?"

_You know he doesn't really mean it._

"Yes he does. He doesn't even want to see my face anymore." A tear escaped her eye and she wiped it away. "I'm so stupid," she whispered to herself. More tears began slipping from her eyes, and try as she might to get rid of them, they only continued to fall.

"The facts would beg to differ. If you were really stupid, you wouldn't be Head Girl." Draco stood at the foot of his staircase and stared off into the fire.

"That was a fluke," Hermione said. She turned around at the sound of his voice and noted that he was completely dressed.

Draco noticed that her eyes were teary. "What's the problem, He—Granger?" he asked.

"Nothing."

"Yet another untrue statement from the lips of Hermione. Granger," he added.

"Why do you care, anyway?"

"I never said I cared."

Hermione looked up at him through blurry eyes. "You know, maybe what I said wasn't completely off the mark."

"I thought it was a lie."

"Well, I didn't believe it when I said it, but now I'm starting to reconsider." Hermione continued looking at him and wiped away the last of her tears, then rose. "You've pretty much got the cruel part down. And the cold-heartedness."

"Of course I do, because I really am an evil bastard."

"I thought you said you weren't."

"Sarcasm, Granger—I'm not. But you think I am."

"No I—"

"You obviously do."

"What are you talking about, you liar? You are! You're not different at all! And you think I'm stupid enough to think you've changed. For the gods' sakes, you're still having sex with everyone all the time!"

_Damn it, how did she know? I swear these shags are more trouble than they're worth. _Draco said nothing as these thoughts ran through his head.

Hermione was now at the foot of her staircase. She began to climb it, then looked back as if she changed her mind. She turned around and came back down the stairs.

"I don't even know why I noticed," Hermione said, "although it's quite hard to pretend that there aren't girls screaming from behind your door every time I come into the dorm."

"Ah yes. You forgot to acknowledge that I'm also a shameless sex god."

"Do you really want that to be true?"

"It is true."

Hermione held his gaze for a few moments, then turned away. "You really disgust me. I try to apologize and you spew all this crap at me." Hermione turned around and began to climbing her staircase.

"If that's what you call an apology, then your thinking is seriously warped."

"Whatever, you disgusting sex fiend!" The portrait door slammed shut seconds after Hermione left the room.

Ok, so maybe all the yelling at her wasn't necessary, but it wasn't welcome on her part either. To think, she had called him a sex fiend—again—when she couldn't even stop herself from jumping on him every time he asked her to. More importantly she still hadn't accepted the fact that he was a different person. Of course, it was because she was just too stubborn to admit her faults, and it was intensely irritating. Draco was in serious need of a way to release all this frustration she had caused. And usually he would with one of those many girls who were always following him around, but not tonight—once again, Hermione had ruined his taste for it.


	15. Potions Again

**Potions Again**

"Hermione, if you're not going to eat your food, then don't bang on your plate." Ginny grabbed the fork out of Hermione's hand and placed it on the table.

"Whatever," Hermione replied. She began poking her eggs with a finger instead.

"Are you really not going to eat?" Ginny was now regarding her with a serious expression.

"No."

Ginny sighed. "The Hermione I know wouldn't be letting this situation get her down."

"Well, I've changed then." Finally she looked up at Ginny. "Everything's changed."

"Is it really so bad that they have?"

"I'm not doing such a good job, now, am I?"

"That's completely up to you. How 'bout instead of taking it out on your food, you go take it out on someone else?" Ginny gestured with her head towards the Slytherin table.

Hermione didn't even bother looking in Draco's direction. "There's no point. There's no point in anything…"

"You are seriously making me sick now."

Hermione ignored her and dared a peek at Draco. He was looking in her direction. Ok, so that hadn't changed. Hermione was going to look away once he looked down, but he didn't. He continued to look at her; his eyes flashed and Hermione couldn't turn away.

Ginny spoke again. "So you have noticed that he's still looking at you?"

That ended the staring match. Draco shot Ginny a dirty look, which she quickly returned.

"Whatever," Hermione replied. "It means nothing; he's made that quite clear."

"What do you mean, nothing!" A few Gryffindors turned to see who was yelling. Ginny lowered her voice. "It means nothing that every meal instead of eating he stares at you? Like you're naked or something…" she said, muttering the last part.

"I told you, he's a mental case, and a tricky one at that. So none of his bipolar behavior means anything unless he accompanies it with an explanation."

Ginny sighed. "I'm looking at you now, along with Draco (she gave a glance towards the Slytherin table to confirm her statement) and I can see that even you don't believe what you're saying."

Hermione didn't reply. Instead she was thinking about what Ginny was saying.

So he looked at her sometimes, but she doubted it was as often as Ginny made it seem. Hermione couldn't even confirm it because she avoided looking in Draco's direction during meals; it only made her feel worse than she already did. Like she'd said moments before, Draco had his own insane reasons for doing things. If he was thinking anything when he looked at her, it was most likely about ripping her heart out and stomping it into the ground.

"Besides," Hermione said, finally speaking, "he's about as cold as an iceberg when he does talk to me." Draco made sure not to speak to her any more than he was obligated to. Having been stuck together in Potions for what looked like the remainder of the year, Draco only spoke to her in that one class. Of course, it was only to tell her to get an ingredient or two, or to mix faster.

"Head duties?" Ginny asked.

"No more than necessary."

Ginny did not say anything for a while. "He still wants you," she said when she finally did speak.

"How do you get that from everything I just said?"

"You said yourself that he's crazy. Obviously the shock of being rejected by someone he actually has an interest in has made him, how do you say…"

"Cold?"

"Well, yes, but more specifically, unwilling to open up again for fear of being rejected. Again."

A ghost of a smile appeared on Hermione's face. "You should be a psychiatrist," she said.

"Why thank you."

"Because only someone who's spent years in study could spew out as much bull as you just did—without even thinking about it."

Ginny narrowed her eyes.

"I will, however, consider what you've just said very seriously," Hermione added. "But right now, I've got to go to Potions." She stood up and tapped Harry and Ron on the shoulders. "Let's go guys."

When the two boys were finally finished stuffing their faces, the trio headed to the Great Hall exit. Hermione turned around and caught Ginny's eye.

"Thanks," she mouthed just before she disappeared into the hallway.

* * *

"And the effect of this potion," Snape tapped the board for what seemed like the billionth time, "is to give the drinker the power to read minds. So, for those of you who have studied Occlumency," here Snape passed a disdainful glare over Harry, "you may be lucky enough to keep your mind from being probed." He paused again. "The effects of the potion will wear off once you have been kicked out of your partner's mind." The professor walked over to his chair and sat down. "Begin," he said, and proceeded to begin grading the papers on his desk.

_Snape is always grading papers, _Hermione thought. _So then what does he do with his free time? _She began to ponder this question when Draco's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"I'm going to get the ingredients," he said. When he returned, he was holding all but one of the jars they needed.

"You're missing the last one," Hermione observed. "I'll get it." Draco said nothing.

_Why am I always getting the last ingredient? _Hermione thought as she walked to the back of the room. _And why doesn't he just ask me to help him instead of nearly dropping everything?_

Hermione returned to the front of the room with the last jar. Draco had already started adding ingredients to the cauldron. He took the jar when she placed it on the table and added three pieces of the strangely-colored herb.

"You can start mixing," he said and stared at the board.

_And why am I always mixing? _She picked up the ladle and began to stir.

"The other direction is better," Draco said.

Hermione switched the direction in which she was stirring.

"Maybe a little faster," he said when she began again.

Hermione couldn't take it anymore. "Why don't _you_ just show me how to do it, since you obviously know what you're doing?"

Draco said nothing but took the ladle from her and started stirring.

"I don't understand why you have to be so lazy," he said after a few minutes of silence.

"Lazy! You won't let me do anything. Here," Hermione said, reaching for the ladle, "I'll finish."

"Don't bother," he said pushing her hand away. "It's almost done."

"Can you tell me why you're being such a jack—"

"Miss Granger." Snape stood and walked over to their desk. "Mister Malfoy. I assume you two are finished with your potion early—again?"

Draco stirred for a few seconds more before he removed the ladle from the cauldron. "Now we are," he replied.

"Well, then, go ahead and test it."

Hermione reached for a vial before the professor could suggest that Draco take it. She grabbed a ladle and spilled a bit of the potion into the vial, then turned to face Draco. The class quieted down. Potions by Draco and Hermione were always good.

Hermione drank the potion and focused her gaze on Draco's face. She closed her eyes as the potion took effect.

_I wonder when she's going to get here, _Draco thought. _Better get ready for when she does._

_Because you wouldn't want her hearing any of your million thoughts about her, _his conscience said.

_I don't have a million thoughts about her, _Draco fought back.

_You're right; it can't possibly be that many, just a lot._

Hermione heard this whole exchange but did nothing. She waited to see how long it would take him to figure out that she was already there.

Draco's conscience continued talking. _So even if she did hear what you actually thought, what would be so bad about that?_

_Maybe she doesn't deserve to know._

_That you actually care? And why you really can't bear talking to her? _his conscience asked.

_Yes. _Draco's thoughts paused for a second. Someone was listening, that someone being Hermione, of course.

_So she's in, _his conscience noted. _You'd better get her out before she finds out something interesting…_

"I'm trying," Draco said aloud.

Even Snape paid attention when Draco said this. Everyone stared as Draco closed his eyes and an uncomfortable expression crossed his face. Finally, both he and Hermione opened their eyes.

"Hmmm," she said.

"Well, did it work?" Snape asked.

"What did you hear?" someone yelled out.

"Quiet." The professor turned back to Hermione.

"Oh…yes, professor," she replied.

"Very well…I guess you can try it too, Mister Malfoy."

_How does that even make sense when I just said that it worked? _Hermione reluctantly handed Draco a vial and he began to pour the potion into it.

_Well, I have no intention of letting him read my thoughts. _Draco swallowed the potion and turned towards Hermione. Instead of closing his eyes, however, he fixed his gaze on her face. She had no choice but to return the stare; as if eye contact were required with the person who was trying to read your mind.

Hermione could feel his presence as soon as he drank the potion. _He's in. _the idea of panicking crossed her mind before she decided that kicking him out would be wiser. Anything but a thought about Draco. _Get him out, get him out…_

Suddenly, Draco's head snapped back. Hermione closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. She turned away from his direction and opened her eyes.

"Well, that was rather…quick," Snape said. He turned away and returned to his desk. "You two are done, I guess," he said, sitting down. "Would you mind handing in your theory on why Mister Malfoy was kicked out so quickly?" The professor said nothing more and began to grade the papers that were covering his desk.

_And I didn't even have to read his mind to know he would say that, _Hermione thought.


	16. Causes and Effects

**Causes and Effects**

Hermione didn't even bother going to dinner that night. After quelling her initial anxiety of the idea, she'd decided she was going to talk to Draco, whether he liked it or not. Instead of hoping to catch him after dinner, she headed directly from her last lesson to the common room and waited.

Draco noted that Hermione wasn't at the Gryffindor table when he sat down at dinner. He hoped she was in the library doing some extra research or something along those lines, and not where he thought she was. If it were otherwise, he anticipated some serious badgering when he returned to the dorm.

And he was right. As soon as he entered the Heads' portrait, there she was, sitting on the couch by the fire. Hermione opened her mouth to speak; Draco ignored her and walked over to his staircase. Hermione stood and followed as he climbed the stairs. Just as he was about to close the portrait, she reached out and grabbed it, then stepped inside.

Draco sighed. "What are you doing, Granger?"

"We need to talk," she replied.

"Well, maybe some other time." He walked into his bedroom, and Hermione followed.

"No. Today."

"Why today?" he asked.

"Because," she said, taking a step closer, "today I heard some very interesting things in your head. Things you don't want to tell me that I want to know."

"How do you know that I wasn't just playing with you?"

"Don't lie."

"Fine. I have nothing else to say to you."

"Then you'll listen to me."

"Just—"

"I'm not going anywhere!" she yelled. "Why can't you just listen?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Go ahead."

"What I said I didn't mean," Hermione began. She took a seat on the bed and continued. "Harry and Ron wanted an explanation. I didn't even have time to think about what I was going to say. And I didn't want them to freak out, so I told them something that would make them leave it alone. But I never meant to lie. But I did…but I didn't really believe what I said." She looked up at Draco. "And I don't believe it now."

"Well?" he asked after he could no longer stand looking at her.

"Well what? Wait, why are you the one saying 'well'? Did you hear what I just said?"

"Yes…"

"Well?"

"Well, that's nice. I think you can go now."

"I told you, I'm not going anywhere. Do you want me to apologize? Did I forget to say that I was sorry?"

Draco gave her a blank stare.

"Well, I am," Hermione said, rising from the bed.

"Ok, so I've listened to what you had to say. What else do you want me to do?"

"Draco, please just understand that this is all a big mistake." She'd looked like she was going to leave when she stood up, but instead she sat back down in one of his chairs. Draco sighed and tried changing the subject.

"I'm starting to think that you're only in my room because you really want that shag," he said.

"Why would you even joke about that?" Hermione stood up again and headed towards the exit. "You know that's not what I want." She disappeared into the corridor.

Draco sat down on the bed and waited for the click of the door. It didn't come. Hermione reappeared at the entrance of the bedroom.

"You know what," she said, "maybe I do want that shag." Draco looked up to see her walking back into the room, and beginning to unclasp her robe.

"What!" Draco watched the robe drop to the floor.

"Yeah, maybe it'll help. And this way we'll both get what we want." She reached down and loosened her shoes, then stepped out of them. "Because you won't have to wonder what's under my clothes anymore, and after we do it, maybe you'll be so mean to me that I'll hate you forever and I won't be able to stand thinking about you." Hermione pulled off her knee-highs next.

Draco watched and made no move to stop her. _I can't have sex with her…_

_Well then, if your pride is so important, stop her, _his conscience said.

Draco stood and walked over to her clothes. He picked up her robe, shoes, and knee-highs as Hermione began unbuttoning her shirt.

"Stop," he said, and grabbed her hands. "You don't want to have sex with me." He placed the clothing in her hands. "You should go."

Hermione ignored his words and kissed him. She dropped the clothes and wrapped her arms around his back. Draco didn't move at all. _Don't touch her, or else you won't be able to stop…_

Draco pulled away from the kiss and took her arms away from his shoulders.

"Herm—"

She wriggled out of his grasp and pulled him closer to her.

"Please Draco, just let me do this." Hermione pushed him onto the bed and then settled on top of him. She bent down and began kissing his neck. Draco closed his eyes as her mouth trailed down to his shirt collar. Gods, but she was quick, he thought as she reached down to unbutton his shirt. Finally Draco opened his eyes.

"Hermione, do you really want to do this?"

"I do." She moved her gaze to his face. "And I'm so sorry about everything. I don't know how it happened, but everything just turned into one big mess. But I'm telling the truth, I really do believe you."

Draco was speechless. Here she was on top of him, saying that she was ready to give herself to him, and he couldn't even think of what to say. He didn't speak for a long time, and so Hermione leaned back in and kissed his lips. His eyes closed again as Hermione began placing kisses all over his face. Her hands continued the job of unbuttoning his shirt. She discarded the fabric on the floor and turned back to him. Then she stopped.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked, opening his eyes.

"Well, I don't really know what I'm doing." She removed her hands from his chest.

"Wait—you were doing just fine." Draco took her hands and put them back on his stomach. "Go ahead," he said and closed his eyes again.

Hermione didn't move. "Could you help me…?"

"Sure."

Draco reached up and took her mouth with his own. He licked her waiting lips and grasped her by the waist, pulling her body onto his. Hermione mumbled into his mouth as Draco began pulling the uniform shirt out of her skirt. When this was accomplished, he rolled her body onto the bed and kneeled above her. His hands quickly unbuttoned the blouse and pulled it off.

He sucked hard on her now swollen lips as his hands moved to caress her body. In another moment his mouth was at her neck. A breath escaped her lips as he gently pulled on her collarbone, and she gasped in surprise as his teeth began to graze her shoulder.

Hermione's insides exploded in a surge of heat as Draco's lips passed over her skin. She fidgeted under him in an attempt to make herself more comfortable, but only succeeded in becoming more desperate for his touches to her body. Draco however, didn't seem to share in the discomfort and was still nibbling away at her shoulder and seemed in no hurry to do more.

Hermione reached down and unclasped his belt, then began to unzip his pants. She tugged at them and pulled them down to uncover his boxers.

"Not so fast," Draco mumbled. He let her finish pulling his pants off and then she threw them on the floor, and placed her hands on the waistband of his boxers.

Draco rolled off her body and watched as she slid the green fabric from his waist at an almost painful pace. Her eyes went wide at the sight of his body now completely revealed to her.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Hermione's gaze moved up to his face. "Well, it's just that I've never been in front of a naked person before."

Draco smiled at this. "Obviously," he said watching her expression. "Do you still want to continue?"

He prayed that she wouldn't resist; not now when he was so painfully ready. She nodded her assent and he reached for her arms, pulling her once more completely onto him. He had been trying not to go as quickly as his body urged him, but gave up the effort at the irresistible way she was looking at him. His hands moved to her thighs and slid up to her underwear, which he ripped off without a second's notice and cast off the bed. She yelped in surprise and he grinned; if she thought that was surprising she obviously didn't know what was coming next. While one hand moved to separate her thighs, the other slid in between them, and without hesitation pushed into her entrance.

"Uhnhh…"

Her legs clamped shut around his hand as she collapsed in shock onto his body. Hermione breathed heavily and squeezed her eyes shut. Draco whispered to her to relax; she could barely find the breath to respond that she was trying, but that it was such a weird sensation.

"Just let me pull out, then."

He waited for her legs to relax and removed his finger. It's supposed to help, he said, and she nodded as her breathing began to slow to a more normal pace.

"Let me go slower ok?" and then he pushed back into her, slowly, trying to control himself and make her more comfortable. Soon enough she relaxed and he began to speed his motions, until his fingers were wet with her release. He removed them and positioned himself under her, unable to restrain himself anymore.

"Clothes," she mumbled.

She was right; take off the clothes. He reached around her back and fumbled with the clasp of her bra until she pulled it open herself and threw it away. Her hands moved to her skirt—why was she taking so long to remove it—and then finally it was off, and Draco pulled her down for another hungry kiss.

His hands eagerly began their exploration of her now exposed body; he turned her underneath him, and then paused in his movements to simply gaze at her.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered.

His lips touched her navel and trailed up from there until they reached the valley between her breasts. Hermione sighed as he placed the softest kisses onto her and began to gently massage her breast with his mouth and hands. She never wanted him to stop; his gentle touches were pushing her to almost unbearable heights of excitement. But stop he did, and held her face with his hands. Her eyes fluttered open—he was waiting for her consent—she gave it wordlessly and closed her eyes again.

"Don't…please, look at me."

She opened her eyes once again and moved their focus to his face. And then Draco pushed into her. Hermione gasped and fought the urge to close her eyes, and instead, a pained expression crossed her face.

"Do you want me to stop?"

"Yes…"

"Gods I'm sorry." Draco hurriedly lifted his body up and looked into her eyes.

"No…it's just—I wasn't expecting that."

"Well, it doesn't hurt for very long. But we can stop."

"No. No stopping."

Draco shook his head and leaned into her for another kiss. When he was sure that she was ready again, he let himself back into her. It was such a painfully slow pace, when he wanted nothing more to have her as quickly as possible; but he waited until he could feel her beginning to relax around him.

"It doesn't hurt so much anymore," she breathed.

Draco took this as his cue to pick up the pace, and he did; slowly, so he caused her no more pain, but more urgent, deeper with every second. She clung to him as he rocked her, pushed her until she could take no more. The sighs and gasps that she could hardly contain only pressed him to continue, until Draco himself was spent and finally lowered her onto the bed. He rested on her, Hermione's arms limp around his back, but still clinging to him as she drew in ragged breaths. Finally he let her go and rolled onto the bed beside her. She shifted on her side, turning to face him, and waited for him to speak.

"I dare say you liked that." Of course whatever he said would be something cocky.

"Maybe," Hermione joked. "I guess we'll just have to try again to be sure."

"Of course," Draco said and lifted a finger to stroke the side of her face. "Of course."


	17. Exposure

**Exposure**

"Ron, could you maybe let me win for once?" Harry scanned the chessboard and sighed. "It's getting kind of depressing."

"But then that wouldn't be fair to me." Ron looked at his players for a few seconds, then took Harry's king. "Checkmate."

Harry groaned. "I guess now that this game is over I can go find Hermione."

"Oh, are you going to her dorm? I'll come with you."

"Ron, normally I'd say yes, but I kind of need to talk to her about something personal."

Ron gave him a blank stare. Then he grinned. "You fancy Hermione!"

"No, it's not that." Harry paused. "How do I explain…Ok, so you know how Hermione and Malfoy are both Heads?"

"Yeah…"

"And so you've noticed that they've gotten a bit…comfortable lately."

"Well not really…" He waited for Harry to continue.

"Ok. I think there's something going on between them."

"What?"

"Yeah, haven't you noticed anything?"

"They don't even talk."

"That doesn't mean anything. Every meal that I see Malfoy, he's always looking at our table. And it can't just be to give me dirty looks. And Hermione…"

"She said it was just work!" Ron considered the idea for a moment. "Are you sure?"

"Remember when we caught them in the gardens? That was just way too weird to be what Hermione says it was."

"Gods," Ron exclaimed as he considered the idea, "that's sick, Harry!"

"Well, I don't want to believe it either. But don't you think her behavior is just a little bit odd?"

Ron looked at Harry for a moment as he again considered the idea. "I guess she is kind of spaced out when Malfoy is around."

"I could be wrong though. I just want to ask her to tell us if there's anything going on."

"Ok…But how are we going to get into the dorm when she's inside?"

"I don't know. Maybe Ginny knows the password."

"Ok. We'll wait I guess." Ron began picking up players and placing them back on the board. "Another game?" he asked. Harry rolled his eyes but consented.

Halfway through, Harry spotted red hair making its way down the girls' dorm staircase.

"She's coming," Harry said.

"You'd better leave this up to me." They continued concentrating on their game until Ginny appeared in the common room.

"Hey Ron," Harry said loudly, "what was the Potions homework?"

"I don't know," Ron responded in an equally loud voice.

"Maybe Hermione knows."

"Yeah, and she could probably help us too. But she's inside her dorm and we're _outside_. And I don't know the password."

"I can't remember either." Harry paused. "Maybe someone else knows it…"

The boys pretended to ponder their predicament until Ron suddenly looked up.

"Hey Ginny." She walked over. "Would you happen to know the password to Hermione's dorm?"

"Yeah…" she said.

"Could you tell us what it is?"

"We just need the Potions homework," Harry piped in.

She eyed them suspiciously. "You guys aren't going to go harass her about Malfoy again, are you?"

"Of course not," Harry said.

"Well, alright…" Ginny said. She leaned down and whispered in Ron's ear.

"Thanks, Ginny," he said. He and Harry immediately stood and rushed out of the common room.

"That was too easy," Harry said as soon as they closed the portrait behind them.

The two boys quickly walked to the statue of armor. Ron pulled the lever and Harry stepped forward as the staircase appeared.

"Alright, say the password."

Ron said the password and the man and woman in the portrait eyed the boys suspiciously, but let them in anyway. They walked over to the red carpeted staircase and then stopped at the portrait once they'd climbed the stairs.

"Hermione!" Harry called.

No response.

"She's not in," the portrait said. "Perhaps the Head Boy," the lady smiled knowingly, "can tell you where she is."

"Uh…ok." Harry looked a little confused, but turned around anyway and followed Ron down the stairs and over to the other staircase. When they reached the portrait, they saw it was open.

"Hmmm," Harry said. They entered and stood in the hallway.

"Malfoy!" Ron called.

Inside the bedroom, Draco heard someone call his name, someone who was definitely inside his room.

"Did you leave the portrait open?" he asked Hermione.

"Oops," she said. The voice called again. "Oh my gods, it's Ron!" she yelled before quickly sinking under the covers.

Draco said nothing as the two boys entered his bedroom. They both gave him a weird look on seeing that he was shirtless, then took in the underwear and clothing strewn across his floor.

"Eww," Ron said.

"I see you're busy," Harry said.

"Yes, so maybe you should leave now," Draco said.

"Believe me, we're leaving," Ron said.

"Do you know where Hermione is? Her portrait told us you might," Harry said.

"Um…no," Draco said. He couldn't help the grin that was creeping onto his face. Too bad Hermione wouldn't think it was funny.

"What the hell are you smiling for!" Ron yelled. "Did you do something to her?"

"Do something to her? Uh, not very much more than usual."

"What did you do?"

"Calm down. I swear I haven't done anything to harm your precious Hermione."

The lump on the bed next to Draco fidgeted a bit, then became still again.

"Fine." Harry gave Draco another dirty look. "If I find out that you've done anything…"

Draco said nothing.

"Hey, girl under the covers." The lump didn't move and Ron continued. "I hope this is the last time you sleep with Malfoy. He's a bastard you know."

Draco rolled his eyes as Ron began making his way to the exit. Harry turned to follow and noticed the girl's robe on the floor.

_Is that the Head Girl's badge? _he thought. Harry turned around and eyed Draco suspiciously. Draco simply beamed at him.

"Come on, Harry," Ron said as Harry began eyeing the toes sticking out from underneath the covers.

Harry moved towards the bed. _That looks like Hermione's uniform too…_

"What are you doing!" Ron yelled as Harry pulled the covers slightly off the lump and revealed Hermione's head. Ron walked over then drew back in surprise at the face that was currently giving Harry a very Draco-like dirty look.

"Hermione!"

"What the hell are you doing?" she asked, glaring at Harry.

"What are you doing?" Harry couldn't help but ask.

"What does it look like?" she retorted.

Ron turned his stare towards Draco. "With Malfoy!"

Hermione said nothing.

"Hermione, I think we need to talk about this," Harry said.

"Oh gods, are you even serious?" Her death glare intensified.

"Maybe you should leave…now," Draco said. He began to pull himself out from under the covers.

"We're leaving, we're leaving," Ron yelled, lifting his hands to shield his eyes from Draco's naked body. "Let's go Harry," he said, grabbing Harry's arm and dragging him from the room.

"Don't forget to close the portrait," Draco yelled. Seconds later it slammed shut.

Draco turned to Hermione. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah…it's just—well, I can't believe them!"

"Don't worry about them."

"I'm not."

He continued to gaze into her eyes. "Are you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah. I'm just wondering if there's such a thing as portrait removal."


	18. A November Intervention

**A November Intervention**

The breakfast confrontation was not what Hermione expected. When she arrived, Harry and Ron simply stared at her with identical expressions of shock, but neither said a word to her. She glared back until they looked away, then took a seat next to Ginny.

"What's going on?" the redhead asked as Hermione picked up a fork.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Hermione replied. She continued ignoring the two boys (well, two out of the three) who were gaping at her.

Ginny stared her down for a moment before Hermione gave in.

"Ok…well, we…you know…" The slightest grin slipped onto her face.

"Ah." Ginny smiled knowingly. "You guys finally did it."

"Shh..." Hermione looked around. "Look guys, if you want to eavesdrop on the conversation, you're going to have to be a little more discreet than that." She glared at Harry and Ron until they returned to eating.

"So then what's the problem?" Ginny asked.

"There's no problem."

"With Ron and Harry?"

"They saw us."

"Shagging?" Ginny's face wrinkled in disgust.

"After the fact."

"So you _did_ go to their dorm for that?" Harry and Ron looked up, and Ginny narrowed her eyes. "I gave you the password so that you could get the Potions homework…" Hermione turned to Ginny with an accusatory expression. "Sorry…I actually _believed_ them."

"Wait a minute," Hermione said, "I told you two the homework at dinner…" She paused. "Why the hell were you in my dorm!"

"We just wanted to talk to you," Ron said.

"You could've talked to me anytime—without breaking into my dorm!"

"The matter was urgent," Harry said. "And I guess we got our answer."

Hermione stared at them in disbelief and remained silent.

"Hermione, why didn't you tell us?" Ron asked.

"Tell you what?"

"That you were doing _that_ with Draco?"

"Well, for your information, although it's none of your business, that was the first time. And who goes around telling her friends that she was…you know…with someone? No one does that!"

"So then there has been something going on," Harry said.

"I'm not going to talk about this with you two any more." Hermione stood. "We've got Potions. I hope you actually did the homework," she said before stalking off to class.

Hermione was slightly relieved by the sight of Draco already inside the Potions classroom. He smiled when she walked over.

"Hi," he finally as she took her seat.

"Hi." She smiled back.

"How are you?"

"Are you serious? You just saw me this morning."

"Well things might have changed…" Hermione looked down. "What?" Draco asked.

"Nothing…"

"Did those fools say something to you?" Draco glared at Harry and Ron as they entered the room. They glared back and took their seats at the other side of the classroom.

"No. And they're not fools, just too nosy for their own good."

"I'll say; I thought they were never going to leave yesterday."

Hermione only sighed.

"Don't worry about them—they'll come around," he said, forcing himself not to roll his eyes at the last past.

Hermione nodded and tried to focus on what the professor was saying. Draco was focusing well enough, but found what Professor Snape quite boring, as he'd already done extensive research on that particular potion. His focus was instead on caressing the part of Hermione's leg left unexposed by her robes.

She frowned at him and pushed his hand away. "Not right now."

"Sorry," he said, a little taken aback.

Hermione turned back to the professor and ignored Draco for the rest of the lesson. Her mind was obviously elsewhere, he noted, watching how she absentmindedly mixed their potion.

"Hermione is there something wrong?" he asked as the class began packing up.

"Nothing, nothing." She finally looked him in the eye. "I just need to relax a bit. I'll see you later." She quickly exited the classroom before Draco could say another word.

Hermione's thoughts were still focused on what to do about her troublesome friends when there was a knock on her door. She sighed and stood, then walked over to the portrait.

"Draco?"

"The one and only."

She grinned and opened the door.

"Hey," she said, stepping back to let him in.

"Hmm…" He began looking around after closing the door. "Read much?" he said picking up one of the many books strewn across the floor.

"It's relaxing. Like stress release or something."

Draco smiled and walked her over to the bed, thinking of his own ways of relieving stress. "Well, anyway…I've noticed that you didn't talk once to your two followers today."

"Did you?" Hermione sighed. "They're not followers, Draco…"

"Right. What's up with you and them?"

"Honestly? They really freaked me out when they found me underneath your sheets."

Draco sighed and rolled his eyes. "Well, who cares about Potty and Weasel?"

"Harry and Ron…"

"Yes, yes—are you worried that they saw you naked or something?"

"No! Are you being dense on purpose?"

Draco simply stared at her.

"I wouldn't be bothered by that—well, maybe a little. But that's not the point. My point is that they obviously are having problems swallowing the idea of us."

"That's it?"

"What do you mean 'that's it'? This is an actual pro—"

"I mean I thought it was something that didn't have an easy solution." He stood.

"What?"

"I'll be right back," he said, and walked out of the room.

Hermione sighed and fell back on the bed. Minutes later, she heard steps coming up her staircase. Draco appeared at the doorway.

"Care to join me?"

Draco took her hand and she followed him downstairs. Then she stopped. Harry and Ron were sitting in the common room, both looking as bewildered as she felt.

"Uhh, Draco…" Hermione glanced at the boys.

"Yes?" He led her to the seats across from Harry and Ron.

"What's going on?"

"Yeah, what is going on?" Ron asked.

"We're having an intervention of the sorts," Draco said gleefully. He smiled at Hermione and she frowned.

"But no one here is taking drugs," Harry eyed Draco. "Unless you are."

Draco ignored him. "So Hermione here tells me that you guys have been giving her a hard time about us sleeping together," he began

"Do you have to say it like that?" she whispered.

Draco ignored her too. "So I thought maybe we should discuss this."

Harry, Ron, and Hermione all stared at him like he was crazy. Finally, Hermione spoke.

"Draco, I don't really want to talk about this…"

"Then how else are you going to solve this problem?" Hermione said nothing. "I'll start, ok?"

"Ok…"

"So, you two listening?" Draco turned his gaze towards Harry and Ron. The two boys mumbled something and stared at him. "Ok, so how did it all start?" he said to himself. "Well, Hermione didn't really want to shag when I first mentioned it."

"Oh gods Draco!" Hermione buried her face in her hands.

"With good reason, Malfoy."

Draco ignored Harry's comment and continued. "But that's not the case anymore."

"Well that's just great Malfoy, you've managed to take advantage of yet another innocent female," Harry said, glaring. "So what's the trick? Did you put some kind of spell on her?"

"Hey! What makes you think I didn't go along with all this?" Hermione said. "Maybe we've been together since first year." Harry's glared turned on her. "I'm just kidding."

"Potter, stop looking so sour. It suits you even worse than your normal face. I suppose it might be a little difficult for you to accept, but this is no trick. So stop giving Hermione such a hard time about it."

"Please tell me this is one big joke." Harry buried his face in his hands. "Hermione, are you serious?" he asked when he looked back up.

"Yes…"

Ron spoke up next. "Ok. This is bizarre. This is also Malfoy we're talking about, which is even more bizarre."

"Maybe it is," Draco said, "and yet, Hermione is completely fine with it. Wouldn't you like to know why?"

Ron eyed him with just the slightest hint of surprise. "Fine. Go ahead."

"Isn't that nice of you?" Draco leaned back on the couch and turned back to Harry. "At least Weasley is willing to listen."

"That's because he doesn't hate you as much as I do," Harry said. "I don't trust you, Malfoy."

"Could you call him Draco?" Hermione asked.

"Call him 'Draco'!" Harry looked at her as if she'd grown another head. "This is enough. Stand up, Malfoy," he said and pulled out his wand. "We're going to duel."

"Harry!" Hermione stood and placed herself between him and Draco. "What the hell is wrong with you? Don't you see that Draco is trying to be civil? At least take a clue from Ron."

Harry lowered his wand and glared at her as she continued to speak. "Now, I know this is a little unexpected—"

"That's an understatement," Ron said.

"But you have to trust me. Draco's not up to anything. We've just finally gotten past our differences, that's all."

"Yeah," Harry said disbelievingly as he glared at Draco. "So what spell did you use, Malfoy? We're going to find out anyway, so you might as well tell me now and spare yourself a lot of pain."

"He does have a point. This is Draco Malfoy we're talking about," Ron added.

"So what?" Hermione asked.

"This is Malfoy, Hermione. MALFOY," Harry said.

"I'm still here, you know," Draco said.

"You shut your mouth," Harry said. "I can't believe this. From the day we first met he's nothing but harass us all, especially you, Hermione—and you expect me to think it's ok? For the gods' sakes, Hermione," Harry said, turning towards her, "he calls you mudblood every chance he gets."

"He doesn't anymore," she replied. "He explained—"

"You can't just explain away six years of deliberate harassment." Harry turned to Draco. "You're up to something," he said, pushing a finger in Draco's face, "and I want to know what it is. What exactly did he do to you?"

"I think we know what they did, so let's not go into detail about it," Ron said. "I'm a little confused about the whys, but maybe he's telling the truth, Harry. I really don't see what's—"

"Because he's Malfoy!" Harry yelled, standing up.

"And who am I anyway?" Draco stepped in front of Hermione and stood face-to-face with Harry. "You don't know me."

"You're right. And maybe if I did know you I'd trust you."

"And you can't trust me?" Hermione yelled.

"Not when you're shacking up with Malfoy. That's ridiculous."

"Well, if it's so ridiculous, then you can leave. Now." She pointed to the portrait "Go away."

Harry stared at her in surprise, which quickly made way to anger. Without another word, he turned around and walked to the portrait. Ron stood and followed him, stopping to give the couple one last puzzled look before he closed the portrait behind him.

Hermione turned to Draco, who was now sitting on the couch again, rubbing his temples with his fingers. She frowned and took a seat next to him.

"Well. So much for your brilliant plan, Malfoy…"


	19. Interruptions

**Interruptions **

"So everyone's happy now?" Ginny asked.

"Not even close. Harry still thinks Draco is stringing me along…" Hermione replied.

"And I hold to that," Harry said.

"Harry!"

"Hermione, you've got to understand that this is a bit much for me to swallow."

"I know—but could you just go with me on this one?"

Harry looked her squarely in the eye. "I guess I've got no other choice, do I? But I'll be watching him…" he said as he turned back to his dinner.

"He'll come around," Ginny said. "Won't you Harry?"

He grumbled but didn't look up. Ginny, who sat at the left of Hermione, watched Harry for any sign that he'd heard her. And Ron, on the left of Harry, suddenly looked up as if sensing the disturbance in the air. He too turned in their direction and waited for what was going to happen.

"Oh, fine." Harry rolled his eyes and gave Hermione a one-armed hug. "Here," he said, picking up a plate and placing it in front of her, "try this pie. It's good."

"Thanks Harry."

Ginny grinned. "Well, it's very pleasant that you're making up," she whispered to Hermione, "but you wouldn't want Draco to get the wrong impression."

Hermione looked up to see Draco giving Harry a very dirty look. Harry returned the favor, then resumed eating. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Well, anyway, I should be going," she said. "Lots of work to do…"

Harry handed her the stack of books at her side. "Thanks Harry," she said, smiling at him. "Now if only these books weren't so heavy…" she muttered as she slowly walked out of the Great Hall.

"I'm really not going to get all of this done," she said to herself as she walked down the corridor.

"Hermione! Wait up." Draco came hurrying from behind her. "Here, let me take those," he said, taking the entire stack of books from her.

"Uh, thanks." She refrained from mentioning that it was unnecessary.

"I see you made up with Potter," Draco said as they reached the statue of armor.

Hermione laughed. "Well, that's what friends do."

"Hmmm." Draco looked as if he were considering the idea. "From another point of view it might seem Potter is so angry because I've moved in on his territory."

"So that's what you consider me—territory?" Hermione grabbed the books from him and entered the door he held open. "Well that's nice." She began walking off to her staircase.

"You know I was just kidding," Draco said, pouting. Hermione was still climbing the stairs. "Where are you going?"

"Well…" she came back down to the landing "I've got so many assignments that if I don't start now, I'll never finish in time." Draco frowned. "Oh, don't look so sad. I promise I'll come over in two hours or so for a break." She gave him a quick peck on the lips. "You'd better start working too," Hermione said as she walked up her staircase.

Hermione was extremely angered by the fact that Professor Snape had given her not one, but two assignments that day. She knew that they were for extra credit, but she also had the feeling that he'd take off points if she didn't do them. Sighing, she began to do work on the first essay. She resisted the urge to throw the book out of the window when she finished and started her next assignment.

A glance at the clock told her that there were only ten minutes until her break with Draco. Figuring that it wouldn't make a difference if she quit early, she threw her papers down and practically ran over to his side of the dorm. After all, even study bugs such as herself enjoyed a little down time.

"I'm ready for my break now!" she yelled through the portrait.

"Hmmm, that's funny. I think you still have eight minutes left," Draco's voice called to her.

"Draco, I'm dying out here!" she began banging on the door.

"Would you mind opening the door?" the man in the portrait yelled.

Draco opened the door. "Ok…I guess I can let you have your break early," he said with a grin on his face.

"I'm so tired," she said, collapsing on his chest. "I hate writing."

"How much do you still have left?" Draco asked as he picked her up. Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck and let him carry her to the bed and lay her down.

"Thankfully, only two more. How 'bout you?" she asked as she sat up.

"Oh…I'm done."

"You're done! Ugh, I don't even want to know how you did that." She eyed him suspiciously. "Don't we have the same amount of work?"

"Maybe, but I write faster." He grinned.

"Sure. I think I'm going to sleep now," Hermione said and lay back on his sheets.

"Now that's no fun."

"I just need to relax."

"Ok…why don't I give you a massage?"

"A massage?" Hermione opened her eyes. "Ok! Are you good?"

"Exceptionally."

Hermione grinned. "I've never had a real massage before," she said as she rolled onto her stomach.

"Really?"

"Well, the only ones I've gotten were from friends, and they weren't exactly professionals."

"What kind of friends were those?"

"Female. And completely straight, so I'm sorry."

"I can dream…" Hermione rolled her eyes. "Ok, let's get started," he said. "Take off your shirt."

"My shirt!"

"Calm down Hermione. I've seen you naked before."

"I know, it's just that—well, I'm a little fat, you know."

"Fat? Who told you that?"

"No one had to. It speaks for itself."

Draco let out an exasperated breath. He wasn't used to complimenting females on their appearance. Usually the girl would just assume she was attractive because he was showing interest in her. Hermione, he supposed, was different. How to go about this one, then?

"Where are you fat?" he asked. "Show me."

She rolled over and looked at him. "Everywhere."

"Oh really? Like here?" His hands passed over her breasts, and Hermione giggled.

"You've got a response for everything."

"Yes, I do. So just take off your shirt. You look wonderful."

"Oh fine." Hermione rolled herself over and sat up. She stood and unbuttoned her shirt, then tossed it on the floor. Draco stared as she took off her bra and threw that too on the floor next to her shirt.

"Ah, wonderful. Lie down."

"Bossy aren't we?" Hermione said, but laid herself on the bed nonetheless.

Draco sat down on the bed and stared at her unclothed back. _Hmmm…_He leaned over her and began to massage her shoulders.

"How does that feel?" he asked after a while.

"Very good…"

"Good."

"Draco?"

"Yes?"

"How does oil feel?"

"Oil?"

"Yeah."

Draco conjured a bottle of oil. "I personally believe the oil is more for the masseur than for the client," he said as he poured it into his hand.

"Me too…" she agreed. Draco began massaging the oil onto her back. "Although, it does feel good…"

"Doesn't it?"

There was silence for a minute.

"Lower…" Hermione mumbled.

"Ok." Draco moved lower.

"Lower," she repeated after a minute. Draco again slid his hands lower down her back. "Lower…"

"As you wish." His hands moved down again.

"Keep going…"

"Hermione, that's as low as I can go."

"What? Oh," she said, disappointed. "I guess you're done then…" Hermione opened her eyes.

"Well, I could go a bit lower…yeah…I could give you another kind of massage somewhere else."

"Really? Where?"

"Right…there." Draco slipped his hand underneath the towel and poked between her legs.

"There?" She looked only vaguely surprised. "With your hands?"

"Uh…not with my hands."

"Then how is it a massage?"

"Well, ok, so it isn't exactly." Hermione was still skeptical, and her expression reflected it. "Come on, I'll show you."

"Uh…ok."

"Good." Draco turned her over. "Hmmm," he said, gazing at her, "maybe I should give you a chest massage next."

"You're disgusting," she giggled.

"Aren't I?" he said as he placed her feet on the bed. He was just about to lean over when a knock sounded at the door.

"I'm tempted to ignore that…"

"Don't," Hermione said as she sat up. "I can't believe this is happening again…good thing I locked the door this time."

Draco waited until she was fully clothed before he went to the door. "Yes?"

"It's Ginny. Is Hermione in there?"

Draco groaned. "Your posse has come to claim you," he said to Hermione, then opened the door. Ginny walked past him into the bedroom, where Hermione was still sitting on the bed.

"Hey, Hermione, could I maybe talk to you for a bit?"

"Well, I was kind of busy…but I guess my life can always be put on hold for everyone else."

"Sorry…" Ginny said.

"Don't worry, I'll come," Hermione said and stood. "Draco, I guess we'll just have to finish our conversation later." He grinned at her obvious lie. "See you later…" she said as she left the room.


	20. Developments

**Developments**

After they left the Heads' dorm, Ginny directed Hermione to the Gryffindor tower.

"So what's up?" Hermione asked Ginny.

"Well…" Hermione gave her a questioning look. "I'll tell you when get there, ok?"

"Ok…but this better be good."

Ginny gave no reply but the slightly uneasy expression that slipped across her face. The pair continued walking in silence until they reached the Gryffindor portrait, said the password to the Fat Lady, and entered. Inside the common room, among the other Gryffindors, were Harry and Ron, who watched the two girls make their way over to the girls' staircase. Hermione ignored the glances she knew they were giving her and quickly followed Ginny into her bedroom.

"So what did you want to talk about?" Hermione said as she sat down on the bed.

"Umm…" Ginny looked slightly nervous as she sat down next to Hermione.

"Spit it out, Ginny."

"I will, calm down—why are you so edgy!"

"I don't know," Hermione said. "Maybe because every time I'm with Draco, one of my friends just has to interrupt…"

These words seemed to only intensify the anxious look on Ginny's face. "You know, maybe I'll just tell you later…" Ginny said and began to stand.

"No, no—might as well tell me now that I'm here. So what's this big thing you've got to tell me?"

Ginny sighed again. "It's not that big of a thing…Ok, so I was in the Owlery after dinner, and when I was there, someone's bird flew in. This fell off its leg." She proceeded to produce a letter from her robes. Hermione rolled her eyes, and Ginny continued. "So, curiosity getting the better of me, I just took a peek—"

"And this has to do with me because?"

"It's from Draco's father," Ginny said and handed the letter to Hermione.

_Draco, _it read;

_I hope this letter finds you doing everything you should; your mother sends her love and hopes you are well. Everything is going swimmingly at the mansion, of course, and I trust you are keeping up with your studies as well. However, I have not written this letter to inquire about your academics; more important things have developed at home. It seems the date that we had previously agreed upon must be changed and your service will be needed sooner than planned. Therefore, instead of next June, I expect that you will be prepared to take up service immediately after this Christmas. I will personally come to get you after the winter break begins. Be sure that you are ready then._

_L.M._

"And so this is the thing you wanted to tell me?" Hermione said as she handed the letter back to Ginny.

"Aren't you the slightest bit concerned, Hermione?"

"About what?"

"Don't be daft about this, Hermione." Ginny dropped her voice to a whisper although no one else was around. "Do you know what this means? Draco's going to be a Death Eater!"

Hermione sighed. "We don't know that, Ginny. Although, I suppose you could conclude that from the letter. But you could also conclude a lot of things."

"Yeah, but this is about Draco. His father is already known to be a Death Eater. And what else could Lucius be talking about? I mean, the language is all secretive and—"

"Ginny, it doesn't matter whether or not that's what the letter really means. Draco's not going to be a Death Eater anyway."

"Oh really? And why not?"

"Because he doesn't want to be," Hermione said, standing. "And he won't."

"Hermione, stop and think about this for a second. What makes you think that he doesn't want to be a Death Eater? And even if he doesn't, do you really think that's going to stop his father from making him one?"

Hermione lowered her gaze to Ginny's face. "I think I know Draco a little bit better than you do, even if I don't know what's going to happen." Hermione turned away and began walking to the door.

"That's the point, Hermione—you don't know. And how much do you really know about Draco anyway? I'm just saying, watch out."

"Well, thanks for the advice. It's nice to know that now all of my friends don't trust me," Hermione said as she closed the door behind her.

* * *

Ron and Harry watched as Hermione sped down the stairs from the girls' dormitory. She had obviously been bothered at whatever Ginny had to say and left the dormitory as quickly as possible. Moments later they saw Ginny come down the same stairs with a similarly annoyed expression on her face. She was looking around the common room when she caught the boys' curious glances.

"I thought she might have at least stopped to talk to you," Ginny said as she approached them.

"She looked too angry for that—what happened?" Harry asked.

"Come over here," Ginny said, moving towards a more secluded corner of the room. "Look at this," she said, handing them the letter. The boys quickly glanced over the paper and then handed it back to Ginny. "So what do you think?"

"I think we've got something to worry about…" Ron said.

"Where did you find this?" Harry asked.

"In the Owlery," Ginny replied.

Harry's face scrunched in thought. "We've got to tell Dumbledore about this."

"Is that such a good idea?"

"You saw what it said, Ginny. _'Your service will be needed sooner than planned'?_ There could be something really big happening with Voldemort," Harry said, and ignored the flinches resulting from the mention of You-Know-Who.

"What did Hermione say when you told her?" Ron asked. "I can see why she was upset now."

"Oh, no you don't. She refused to listen to me." They both gave her puzzled looks. "She doesn't think this means anything."

"I always knew Malfoy was no good," Ron cut in.

"Yeah, I can't believe he managed to trick her this badly," Harry said. "And she didn't listen to you? Gods, now I have even more of a reason to bash his face in…" He stood, and the others stood too. "Well, we've got to tell Dumbledore right away. Let's go," he said, and they walked towards the portrait, earning several curious glances from the rest of the people in the common room.

Hermione had rushed out of the Gryffindor tower because she was angry, but it wasn't just the news from Ginny that had made her so. She hadn't said it, but even now she began to worry if what the letter implied was in fact the truth. She quickly headed back to her own dorm, hoping to put her fears to rest with the sight of Draco, hopefully engaged in some normal unsuspicious activity. However, he wasn't in the common room when she entered, so Hermione went to her own bedroom to lie down and gather her thoughts.

The idea that, most likely, Draco was on his way to being a Death Eater, had hit her like a pile of bricks as she read the letter. Hermione wanted to trust in everything he'd told her, and that he would never submit himself to Voldemort's service, but she feared that his father had indomitable control over his life. She didn't know what the elder Malfoy was capable of, but if what she heard was true, then how could Draco possibly escape the fate that seemed to await him?

Hermione was taken with fear of what seemed to be the inevitable, and she could hardly force herself to continue this train of thought. She rolled off the bed and stood, then left her bedroom for the common room. Draco was sitting on the couch, seemingly awaiting her appearance.

"Hey," he said as she sat down beside him.

"Hey yourself…have you been here since I left?" she asked.

"Of course not. I made a short visit to the Slytherins—haven't been there in a while. And now I'm back here," Draco said. "Did you have fun with Ginny?"

Hermione fought to keep a guilty expression off her face. "Yeah, I guess…"

"What did she want to talk to you about?"

"Uhh, just girl stuff really."

"Girl stuff? Sounds like some kind of excuse…"

"It's not—just information you probably wouldn't want to hear."

"Ok…"

"Let's just not talk about it…" Hermione's gaze wandered off around the room, and she gave an involuntary sigh.

"Is there something wrong, Hermione?" Draco asked.

"Oh, I don't know…well, I was just thinking about something—I don't even know why…"

"About what?"

"Well…" She turned to face him with an anxious expression on her face, and her eyes pleaded with him for an honest answer. "Draco, are you going to be a Death Eater?"

"Of course not. I thought we talked about this before."

"I know, but are you sure?"

"Whoa, hold on. Why are you even worrying about this? Is that what Ginny had to say to you?"

"No, no. I don't know why it even came to mind."

"Hey, don't worry about it," he said, gathering her in his arms. "Nothing like that's going to happen."

"But are you sure? What about your father?"

"I don't know what will happen with my father. But I promise you that I will never become a Death Eater. Ok?" he said, looking into her eyes.

"Yeah. Ok."


	21. A Rush

**A Rush**

When the door to the Headmaster's office opened, Harry, Ron, and Ginny entered to see Dumbledore bent over a parchment he held in his hand. He looked up and motioned for them to sit in the three chairs that appeared in front of his desk.

"Good evening," he said, placing the scroll on his desk. "Is there something I can do for you three?"

Ginny was the first to speak. "I found this letter in the Owlery, professor," she said and pulled the paper out of her robes. She handed it to the Headmaster, who quickly read it and then looked up at the trio.

Dumbledore leaned back in his chair. "And so what do you think, Miss Weasley?"

"Well, we think that the letter is from Malfoy's father, of course, and that this probably means that he's going to become a Death Eater any time now…"

"It would seem like that is the case, wouldn't you agree?" Dumbledore reread the letter and put it on his desk. "Thank you for this information. Now, I think it's getting close to lights out…"

"But professor, aren't you worried?" Ron asked. "Don't you think that maybe there's some new plot from You-Know-Who involving all the Death Eaters?"

Dumbledore fixed his gaze on Ron. "Mister Weasley, this is not something for you to worry about right now. But yes, it's completely possible, and highly probable."

"So then what are you going to do? Shouldn't you be preparing for an attack, or something!" Harry asked.

"Yes…yes." Dumbledore sighed, and looked at all three of the Gryffindors in front of him. "I don't want you three getting involved. This letter is only a small clue as to what Voldemort is planning. Besides this we know nothing else, and to do anything before we know more could be dangerous. I suggest a good night of rest to all of you." Harry frowned but stood and the others followed suit. "And please, do leave Mister Malfoy alone."

"What about the letter, professor?" Ginny asked.

"The letter, yes…I will make sure that it reaches Mister Malfoy. Good night."

They nodded at the Headmaster, said their goodbyes, and left. As soon as they were back in the hallway, Ron spoke.

"I can't believe Dumbledore wasn't more worried about this! And he wouldn't even tell us anything!"

"You know Dumbledore wasn't going to give any information away," Ginny said. "He's right—we shouldn't get involved when we probably know even less than he does."

"Leave 'Mister Malfoy' alone, he says. Sure." Harry glared at the floor as they walked back to their dorm. "Malfoy probably knew about this all along. And to think Hermione is that close to him…she's probably in danger as we speak."

"Try telling her that," Ginny said. "She'll probably hex you before she leaves him."

"I don't care," Harry said. "I don't want her near him anymore. We can't let him hurt her, and it's inevitable if they spend any more time together."

They stopped in front of the Fat Lady and said the password to their dorm. There were still a few Gryffindors lazing around in the common room, but most had already headed off to bed. Ginny walked over to her own staircase and began to walk up the stairs.

"Wait Ginny," Harry said and she turned around. "We'll discuss this later, ok?"

"Yeah. You guys are going to sleep now, right?"

"Of course."

"Sure," Ginny said, and walked up the stairs. "Good night…"

* * *

Draco was only slightly agitated when an owl he knew to be his father's flew in and dropped a note besides his plate at breakfast. He opened the letter, read it and frowned, then quickly put it away.

At the Gryffindor table, Hermione took notice of every action Draco made as he read the letter. The worry she'd felt the night before came back in a rush as she watched him fold the note and place it in his pocket. He looked as if he had been expecting it; there was no worry, no change of expression on his face as he resumed eating. Maybe Ginny had been right when she'd guessed the meaning of the letter.

Well, of course she was right—there was no way around it. Hermione was just having trouble processing the idea. But Draco had promised that it wasn't going to happen, and Hermione had put all her faith in this resolution.

Draco ate the rest of his breakfast in silence, just barely processing the Slytherins around him and their attempts to win his attention. He instead focused on trying to rid himself of the intense despair that was suddenly clouding his mind. So his father had moved the date up, had he? And it was already the first of December. Now there was nothing he could do to slow the time. The truth was Draco had no plan, and absolutely no idea what he would do. He'd hoped that by the end of the year, some idea would have come to mind to escape what his father had planned for him. But it was almost inevitable now that his father would have his way.

And then there was Hermione. Hermione. There was so much confusion tied up with that one name. He looked over to her table where she sat looking pretty miserable herself. On her face was an expression similar to the one from yesterday, when she'd told him about her worries of him becoming a Death Eater. It was almost like she'd predicted the arrival of the letter that was now in his pocket. He wondered if it was mere coincidence that she'd brought up this subject right before he received this news. He glanced at the people surrounding her, who seemed to be all giving him particularly hateful glares.

It was too much of a coincidence to Draco. Well, he was just going to have to ask Hermione what she knew about this situation. Chances were she'd passed on that information to her three closest friends, and now they were all intent on hating him, once again.

At that moment, Hermione looked up and caught his gaze. She attempted a weak smile in Draco's direction, which he returned. Then he returned to eating his breakfast as Hermione returned to her own thoughts.

* * *

"So, what exactly are we discussing here?" Ginny surveyed the two boys sitting at her feet on the common room floor. Ron and Harry looked at each other, then looked around the room to make sure that no one was paying any particular attention to their conversation.

"I think maybe we should take this conversation to the library," Harry said.

Ron agreed, and Ginny rolled her eyes, but assented. The trio quickly left the common room for the library. They settled into a corner hidden from the view of the entrance, and Ginny repeated her question.

"We're here because we need to act quickly and efficiently. Vacation is coming up soon, and after that we probably won't be able to get anything out of Malfoy if we need to," Harry said.

"Not to mention," Ron added, "that there'll probably be an attack right after the initiation, which will probably be sometime during the holiday."

"Right. Most likely, Voldemort is initiating an entire set of new Death Eaters, including Malfoy. He's building up his forces to attack, but we don't know where or exactly when."

"We've also got to get Hermione away from Malfoy," Ginny reminded them.

"We'll do that. Hermione's got to listen to reason. Hopefully she hasn't been too influenced by him to not realize what's going on here."

"Hermione is still a sensible person," Ron said. "At least, I hope she is…"

"And how exactly are we going to persuade her to listen to us and give up her boyfriend?" Ginny rolled her eyes in exasperation. "You two don't understand. He means a lot to her now."

"Ok. You're right." Harry closed his eyes and thought for a minute. "We'll leave that up to you, then, since you understand more than we do, right?"

"Don't be sarcastic, Harry."

"I'm not. You're going to do it."

Ginny pondered the idea for a second. "I think it would mean more if she heard this from all of us."

"Ok, great, we'll do that," Ron cut in. "So what are we going to do about Malfoy? And all the rest of the Death Eaters?"

"Well, it's a good thing that we've been keeping the D.A. meetings going," Harry said. "We should probably introduce some new defense spells there. Besides that, I don't know what else we can really do, besides somehow persuade Dumbledore to give us a bit more information."

"And we can't let Malfoy or any of the other Slytherins know that we know anything," Ginny said.

"Of course, Ginny," Ron said. Ginny waited for Harry to agree.

"Well, then," she said after he nodded, "let's go find Hermione."


	22. Bigger Than Expected

**Bigger Than Expected**

"Hey, Hermione, are you busy tonight?"

Hermione looked up into Ginny's expectant face. "Why, do you have something else to tell me?" Hermione asked.

"Not really. I just wanted to talk," Ginny said.

"About what?"

"Well…I know we kind of left each other on bad terms. I don't want you to be angry with me."

Hermione sighed. "I'm not. You just caught me off-guard." She turned back to her dinner and contemplated the positioning of the chicken next to the carrots. "But we can still talk, I guess."

"Great." Ginny rose from her own seat. "I've actually got some work to do in the library right now. Can I come by at eight?"

"Sure. See you then," Hermione said as her attention returned to her plate.

She was actually going over the events of the past few days in her mind, and how unfazed Draco seemed to be by the letter. He hadn't mentioned it to her at all. It was almost like he hadn't received it. And now that Hermione had had more time to consider it, she was completely convinced that Draco couldn't possibly be on his way to joining the Death Eater—if he wasn't worried then why should she be? At least, that was what Hermione told herself.

Harry and Ron slid over into the space Ginny had previously occupied and interrupted Hermione's thoughts.

"So what's the news, Hermione?" Harry asked.

Hermione looked up at Harry's words and noticed that he was giving her a concerned look. "I could ask you the same thing."

"Oh, nothing much. Although, you'd know that if you were around more often."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Oh Harry, you're so tactless." Ron pushed him aside and leaned closer to Hermione. "What he means to say is that we miss you. We don't see you anymore."

"You see me right now."

"Right. But we never really hang out, you know?"

Hermione considered the idea. "I suppose you're right…"

"Hey, what are you doing tonight? Surely you can spare some time."

"I can actually," she said and smiled. Now if only Harry could be like that. But no, Harry had been a little uptight lately, ever since he'd discovered her relationship with Draco. And he was still giving her that concerned look she'd thought she misinterpreted before.

"We'll stop by sometime tonight. And then we can paint our nails and gossip about all the cute guys," Ron joked.

"Ha ha." Hermione looked at her watch. "Ok, time's up. I'll see you later." Hermione picked up her books and rose.

Perhaps it would be a good thing to talk to them. Ron was right—she hadn't been with her friends in a while. And while they were probably blaming that all on Draco, and while they were probably right, at least she knew it and felt bad about it. Maybe she could even figure out just what was making Harry so sour. Although he'd said himself that he had no problem with Draco, Hermione had more than just a suspicion that Harry wasn't being completely honest about that.

* * *

"Harry, maybe you should try to be a little nicer to her." Ron said after Hermione had left. "Even if she is with Malfoy, she's not the evil one here."

"Was I being mean?" Harry asked.

"You certainly weren't being nice." Ron sighed. "And in any case, if we're going to convince her of anything we don't want to make her angry. Don't look so upset," he said and patted Harry on the back. "She even said we could come by tonight. She's not completely ignoring us."

"Yeah yeah yeah…" Harry rolled his eyes. "Malfoy doesn't have to ask to come by. He probably just forces his way into her bedroom…"

"From the way you talk you'd think you actually do fancy Hermione," Ron said with a grin.

"Let's not go there," Harry said. "We should probably go find Ginny now."

"Right."

The two boys stood and walked out of the Great Hall in the direction of the library. Ginny was sitting on the couch where the three had last met.

"Well, she said I could come by at eight," Ginny said.

"I wonder if she's expecting us at the same time she's expecting you," Ron said as he took a seat.

"Wait—what?"

"She said we could come by too."

Ginny sighed. "You can't do that."

"Why not?" Harry asked.

"Because she doesn't know that you two know about the letter."

"I thought we'd agreed that we were all going to talk to her."

"Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time—"

"It was your idea…" Harry reminded her.

"Yes I know. But then I thought, hey, she'll be angry enough that I'm telling her to dump her boyfriend—"

"That's too bad." Harry stood. "We're going. Right now." He walked off before Ginny could say any more to him. Ginny looked at Ron, and he shrugged, but they followed anyway.

"Let me go first," Ginny said when they arrived at the Heads' dormitory. "She's not expecting you yet."

Ginny said the password, and all three walked into the dormitory, then up the staircase leading to Hermione's room. She called Hermione's name and seconds later, the portrait opened.

"Hey Ginny," she said with a smile, "and Harry and Ron…I didn't think you guys would be here now." She gave Ginny a questioning look but the redhead avoided her gaze.

"There's no problem with that, is there?" Harry asked as he walked into Hermione's room.

"I guess not—I just thought that Ginny and I were going to talk about…things that these guys wouldn't want to hear."

Ron closed the door behind him. "Well, actually…we all want to talk about it."

"About what?" Hermione eyed the three as comprehension dawned on her, and then turned to Ginny. "Did you tell them! Oh gods, I can't believe this!"

"Calm down Hermione," Ginny said as she moved towards her. "Wouldn't you have done the same thing?"

"No!"

"Not even if you were worried about one of us?" Ron asked.

Hermione sighed. She closed her eyes and counted to ten in an attempt to calm herself. "Maybe I would." She sat down on her bed. "But you don't have anything to worry about."

"Yes we do," Harry said.

Hermione sighed again. She knew she was in for a long conversation. "I guess you'll want chairs, then." She conjured a couch big enough for them all to sit on, and Harry, Ron, and Ginny settled onto it.

"We've all seen the letter, Hermione," Harry said as soon as Hermione had taken a seat on her bed. "And there's nothing else that it could be referring to besides Malfoy's initiation into the Death Eaters' circle." Harry kept his gaze on Hermione to gauge her reactions, but the expression on her face remained set in stony seriousness. She frowned, however, at the tone in which Harry pronounced Draco's last name and rolled her eyes.

"Draco's not going to be a Death Eater," she said.

"Are you so sure about that Hermione? Really, it's all in the letter. And we have every reason to worry. Something's going to happen and it's going to happen soon. They've_ moved it up_. Whatever Voldemort's planning is important enough that it needs to be done as soon as possible."

"And that means we all have to worry," Ron said. "But of all of us in this room, besides Harry of course, you're in the most danger. You're Muggle-born, Hermione. It's probably not the best idea that you're living with someone who's swearing himself to You-Know-Who."

"I'm sure you don't have to stay here, Hermione," Harry said. "I bet if you ask Dumbledore he'll let you move in with Ginny or something."

"Ok, Harry, I'm not moving out of my dorm. This is ridiculous. I'm really serious—Draco's not going to be a Death Eater."

Harry scoffed. "How can you say that, Hermione? Are you being dense on purpose?" Malfoy is most definitely going to be a Death Eater," he stated. "And Death Eaters exist to kill Muggle-borns. You're living right next to someone who's going to kill you."

Hermione rose from her seat with this statement. "How dare you say that, Harry!"

"Because it's true!" Harry was now also on his feet.

"Ok." Hermione stared him down for a few seconds. "Get out—now."

"Herm—"

"Get out. Stand up," she said to Ron and Ginny who were still sitting. They rose and she waved the couch into thin air. "Now leave."

Harry still hadn't turned to go, and still had his gaze locked on Hermione's face. She said nothing and returned his angry stare. Finally Harry turned around and walked to the door, Ron and Ginny in tow. Hermione slammed the door behind them.

Ginny looked at the floor, and then back up at the two boys. "Looks like that didn't go how you planned."


	23. A Curious Kind of Bet

**A Curious Kind of Bet**

Hermione waited until the footsteps of her friends had retreated. "I can't believe this," she said to herself as she left her room and walked down the staircase. She entered the common room to see Draco also descending the stairs from his room.

"Hi," he said as he sat down on a couch.

"Hi," she said back, and walked over to his awaiting arms. Hermione sat down and Draco drew her closer to him. She leaned into his chest and sighed.

"You don't look so happy," Draco said as she nestled closer to him. "What's wrong?"

"Oh nothing…"

"Come on, Hermione, you know you can tell me."

Hermione sighed again. Lately she'd been letting out lots of sighs. "They're ridiculous."

"Ah, the infamous bumbling Gryffindor friends. What did they do this time?"

"I wouldn't call them bumbling. They're just—ridiculous. And exasperating."

"What about?" Draco repeated. He was getting the feeling that what they'd said this time was more than the meddling they usually did.

"Nothing important, but somehow really annoying. Can we just not talk about it?"

"Alright." They sat in silence for some few minutes. "Hermione, I don't like to ask, but is there something you're not telling me?"

"No." She looked up at him. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

That did it. Draco was convinced she more than she was letting, although he couldn't figure out how that was possible. "No," he said with perfect composure.

The two sat in silence once again. Draco was consumed in a considerable amount of guilt for not telling Hermione about the letter. There was, of course, the chance she didn't know about it, but Draco didn't place too much confidence in that. He knew that he owed it to her to be honest, but the fearful part of him said that to do that could very possibly lead to the dissolution of their relationship. Once it was out, they would have to acknowledge the fact that Draco was soon to be a dangerous man—of that he was certain—and then she wouldn't want to be with him anymore.

Draco was worried about losing the thing he was holding at that moment, lying there, tucked perfectly into his arms. He knew he was happy at that moment with Hermione, and it was just so unfair that he wasn't going to have the chance to keep her. Maybe by not telling her just yet he was postponing the inevitable separation that they faced, but at least they would have some time left to them.

"What are you thinking?" Hermione said, interrupting his thoughts.

"What?" Draco looked down into her eyes. "I was just thinking about the future."

"Really?" Hermione thought for a second. "Well, it'll get here eventually, so there's no point really in thinking too much about it."

"Hmm. You're right. There is no point in worrying, is there?"

"Nope."

"Hey," Draco said, sitting up, "let's go fool around upstairs."

Hermione laughed. "You're so to the point…"

"Aren't I, though?" he said as he lifted her off the couch and ran up the stairs to his room.

* * *

"Draco, what's up? I haven't seen you around lately."

"Well, I've been a little preoccupied," Draco replied. He shut the portrait to the Slytherin common room and took a seat on one of the couches.

Blaise moved to a seat closer to Draco. "Really? With what?"

"Oh, you know, Head duties. They just keep piling up…"

Blaise smiled. "And do the Head duties include sex with the Head Girl?"

Draco's expression remained blank. "Sex with the Head Girl?"

"Not everyone is oblivious to the facts, Draco," Blaise said in a lowered voice. "In fact, if one watches for long enough, they are quite obvious."

"Obvious?"

"You don't have to repeat everything I say."

"Well, I'm just trying to make sure I'm hearing you correctly."

"Then yes, obvious. It's only a matter of time before the other Slytherins catch on. Even Pansy might notice."

"Pansy will be an idiot no matter what happens."

"I'm just saying…I don't think you have your priorities straight."

"My priorities? Blaise, I think I know what I'm doing."

"You haven't been in this common room for weeks."

"I come by for patrols."

"And leave as quickly as you come." Draco remained silent. "I doubt the sex is that good."

"It's not—"

"Because you know there are plenty of girls just waiting for a nod from you."

"I don't care about other girls."

"You don't?" Blaise studied the expression on Draco's face. "Oh, you think you're in love with her?" Once again, Draco said nothing. "The worst mistake you can make is confusing love with what seems to me to be really, really good sex."

"You think I'm just making a mistake?"

"Happens quite often, I must say. I bet you guys do it a lot?" Blaise said with a smug smile.

"Not true. We do other things."

"Have you ever gone one day without sex?"

"Why should I?"

"Exactly. Just try it for one day and see how disgruntled you'll be," Blaise said and rose from the couch. "Well, I've got some of my own…business to attend to. I'll be seeing you around I hope."

Draco closed his eyes and leaned back. Was Blaise really right? Draco wandered back to his dorm, confused. Of course there was the possibility that Blaise was correct in this assumption. But no, there was much more to it. For one, the worry he felt whenever he looked at Hermione and thought about what would happen in the future. Of course their relationship was more than just sex, of that he was sure. He would just have to prove Blaise wrong, and do what seemed impossible.

Draco entered the dorm to find Hermione curled up on the couch reading the book of poems from the Heads' compartment.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey." Hermione looked up and smiled.

Draco walked over and took a seat next to her. "Hermione…" She turned to face him. "Are you expecting to have sex tonight?"

"Uhh…well…that's what generally happens; why?"

"Would you mind if we didn't?"

"Not really…"

"Ok. So we won't, I guess."

"Err…ok." She placed the book down on the couch. "Any reason why?"

"No reason; just, I was wondering what it was like."

"Uh, ok." Hermione said and resumed reading.

"Well, I've got a bit of work to do…" Draco rose from the couch. "Good night."

"No kiss?" She pouted.

"Well, of course, but not for too long…I won't be able to stop myself." He leaned down for a kiss and Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. Reluctantly, Draco finally pulled back.

"Ahh, so you do want me…" Hermione smiled and picked up her book.

"Of course…good night again."

"Good night."

_Why am I doing this again? _Draco slowly climbed the stairs, and entered his portrait. He began to think as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Ok, so no sex tonight. It wasn't that bad, was it? _I can handle this. _Draco rolled over. _No sex necessary. Well, maybe not completely. _

_I disagree with Blaise, _his conscience said. _It's a perfectly healthy thing to want to sleep with the person you've been sleeping with for the past month._

"But every day? How can someone—I mean, besides myself—constantly be that ready?"

_She is, obviously._

"Probably because she was the biggest virgin I'd ever seen before we got together."

_Hmm. Even I don't know what to say to that…

* * *

_

Well, this is where I'd left off just before the story got taken down. Who knows when I'll update next? I certainly don't…But never fear: there will always be more story.


	24. Two Voices

**Soofija**: I have to say you are most definitely one of my favorite reviewers; so dedicated. :)

I'm sorry, my proofreading skills have been seriously lacking lately, don't know why. :hangs head in shame:

I'm a fan of happy endings too…

**DrAcO'sblackrose**, **FaeRie Fire**, **Laura**: Mild! Well, thank you. I really can't say why it was taken down, but I can explain the email I got. The peeps at fanfiction said that the title wasn't G-rated. Ok, I'll give them that. However, I don't believe that they spend their leisure time scanning the archives for improperly titled stories, though I wouldn't know because I've never had a story taken down before. My best guest is that someone insanely offended by what I've written (in or out of the story) reported me. And for that, I frown on him or her. But no matter, it's up again! And I'm glad you're enjoying it.

**nArKoTiCa**: Yes! I have succeeded, even if a little.

**Buffy-CrazyaboutAngel**: Hermione, I fear, won't have to worry about that for much longer. But they're just being friends—overprotective, but friends all the same.

**xoKaSsIeox**: Ha. You think so? We will see…

**xXxAngelsOfDeathxXx**: Yes! Don't be sad, it's back…

**cherbi161**: Will do.

**Chewy L.**: Well, here it is.

Thanks to **eventers club**, **Velocity gurl**, **prep50-50punkwriter**, **MirrorOfRapture**, **Pottersgurl07**, **Remusluver**, **swmfree**, and **princesstiggeroe** for reviewing.

I find that this chapter is rather uneventful, but you guys will bear with me, right?

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**Two Voices**

It was quite the task to sit next to Hermione and not just grab her up liked he was used to doing. She was bent happily over her homework on the common room floor, scribbling away; and Draco was staring at her in a mixture of frustration and awe. How could she sit there and not be as unfocused as he was? He at the moment was having some very unwholesome thoughts about her body and she was gracing her homework with a contented smile. He sighed; her mind was most definitely not like his.

Hermione finally looked up. "Are you done with your essay?"

He mumbled a 'no' and she gave him a disparaging look.

"Well, I'm done with my homework," she said, "so I'm going off to bed now." She gave him a quick peck on the lips, said good night, and disappeared up her staircase.

Draco was seriously disgruntled. Between pondering the fast-approaching doom of Voldemort and the Death Eaters, and the bet with Blaise, how could he be anything else? The no-sex escapade had officially been going on for a full week. Far be it from him to admit his weaknesses, but it seemed like Blaise had been correct. He wasn't handling it well at all.

He'd found himself unreasonably angry for the first few days, snapping at anyone who bothered him in even the slightest way—except for Hermione, of course. He eventually figured that it would be a good idea to avoid as many people as possible, for his sanity and the safety of the general population. He wasn't sure which, if any, of the Slytherins had noticed the difference, but he didn't much care. Spending time with others had lost what little appeal it had. In place of his former, more pleasant activities, Draco now spent his nights, and much of his days, flying around on his broom. It was the perfect way to avoid everyone and have time away from the Heads' dormitory to think.

Hermione, on the other hand, seemed to have no problem with the situation. She was always cheery, maybe even more so than usual, which Draco attested to the fact that she no longer had the distraction of sex to deal with. His only pleasure in all that contentment came from the fact that she still didn't seem to be on such good terms with her friends. Potter and the two Weasleys didn't talk to her, and Draco caught them frequently giving him suspicious glances. He refrained from walking over to the Gryffindor table at meals and wiping that irritating expression off Potter's face for the sole reason that the kid was still Hermione's friend.

Of course, Hermione's situation was not as pleasant as Draco believed. At first she'd thought his suggestion was simply a joke that would blow over quickly enough, so she'd decided to play along. Now she knew it was more serious than that. Perhaps she felt as discontented as he did by the sudden lack of intimacy in their relationship, but she was more worried by the changes she saw in him. If he had been notorious before for being somewhat of a loner, it was nothing compared to his present behavior. He didn't spend time with the other members of his house, or any other house for that matter. Hermione often wondered to where he disappeared and spent his time, and more often than not her thoughts said that he was with another girl. Hermione tried not to give in to the idea, but it would explain everything—why he didn't want her anymore and why he seemed distracted when they were together.

Under normal circumstance Hermione would've already gone to her friends and relayed her fears. She was well aware, however, that this was exactly what they were waiting for, and Hermione refused to give in and justify their treatment of her and Draco. She saw Harry and Ron in many of her classes, but even if she had wanted to approach them, they always sectioned themselves off and began to work before she had the opportunity. And Ginny mimicked their behavior in every way. It seemed like there was tension between her and everyone she was close to. And why, when not a few weeks ago, she was happy and everyone else was reasonably content?

It was with these thoughts on her mind that Hermione entered the common room to find Draco curled up on one of the couches, in something that looked like the fetal position. She approached him gingerly and touched his shoulder.

"Draco?"

He looked up at finding her bent over him and sighed, then rolled onto the floor. After a moment he stood, then sat back down on the couch.

Hermione looked concerned. "Is there something wrong?"

"No," he said, "just thinking."

Well, it wasn't a complete lie. He'd been thinking for the entire day. The subject of his thoughts, however, would've have undoubtedly upset her if she knew what they were. Mostly he'd been remembering what Blaise had said about their relationship, and the horrible, undeniable truth of the statement. Restraining himself from touching Hermione was one of the hardest things he'd even done. Even though Draco hadn't broken the rules, the fact that it had proven to be such a difficult feat confirmed what Blaise had to say: that was their whole relationship.

But it wasn't like he and Hermione didn't do other things. They talked, they joked, they snuggled (in private—they'd both agreed that it would be best not to make their relationship public). They did everything other couples did, and Draco enjoyed it. And yet he hadn't been able to shake the feeling that something was intrinsically wrong with their relationship.

_So you don't even know what you're worried about?_

"No."

And apparently he was back to talking to himself.

_You might want to figure that out._

"I know, ok…I'll tell you what's wrong. What's going to happen when one day we stop wanting to have sex so much? Nothing. It won't be ok. I'm going to lose interest in her and then I'll be repulsed by the idea of being in her presence. It's what happens."

_You don't know that._

"What else would happen? Sex is all we do. When we don't do that anymore, what's going to keep us together?"

_Maybe love?_

Draco laughed; he was obviously going crazy. "Love? I'm not in love. In love with the sex, maybe. But that's all."

_Interesting way to put it._

"Interesting and the truth."

The voice kept talking to him, of course, trying to get him to consider the idea. Draco tried blocking it out to no avail. It was a shame, that after all these years he had finally cracked, just when he had the chance to take control of his destiny. After a while, quiet finally returned to his head and he lay on the couch in contemplation of what the voice had said. That was how Hermione found him when she entered the dorm.

She looked unconvinced by his latest statement. Even so, Hermione turned away in the direction of her bedroom. Draco watched her walk away, and then she changed her mind, and turned back to him with a determined look on her face.

"Is there something going on that you're not telling me?"

Well, she had asked. Draco reluctantly looked up at her. "Actually, there is."

A positively horrified expression took her face. "So there is someone else?" Hermione sighed, raising her hands to her forehead.

"What?" Draco was confused, but quickly realized what she suspected. "No, of course not! Not when I have you."

She looked greatly relieved, but still refused to meet his eyes. "So what do you have to tell me?"

Draco gulped. He couldn't believe he was doing this, not to her. Funny how he'd never imagined this scenario until he was faced with it. "We-we…probably shouldn't be together anymore." There, better to be straightforward.

Her head snapped up and she looked at him incredulously. Now it was her turn to ask him what he was talking about.

He didn't know what to say; then finally: "don't you feel that there's something wrong with this whole situation?"

She made no response.

"We can still be friends," he said weakly. Then again: "we should be friends." He rubbed his face and looked at her. She was looking right back at him.

"Why?" Hermione asked.

"Why we should be friends?"

"No. I mean, why are you doing this? What's wrong with us?" She said it with a unexpected amount of calm for someone who was being broken up with.

"Nothing, there's nothing wrong with us, or you. Maybe me. Maybe there's something wrong with me, but it just doesn't feel right."

"How can you say that?"

"I don't know."

"Apparently," she said with a hint of bitterness in her voice, "you don't know anything." Hermione could feel the tears building up behind her eyes, but she forced them away and waited for him to speak.

"Please, don't take this in the wrong way. I'm so sorry, Hermione; believe me, I never wanted to hurt you."

"It's interesting that you say that. It's also interesting that you don't want me to 'take this' in the wrong way. There's only one way to take it. You don't want to be with me, correct?"

He seemed to be wracking his brain for the right words. "It's not that I don't want to be with you," he finally said, "it's that I can't."

"Ok…think about how much sense that would make to the average person. Either you're lying, which I doubt, or you are right. This is wrong. And we shouldn't be together." She began walking off to her staircase.

"Wait, wait. I still want us to spend time together. We can still do that, right; we can still be friends?"

"Ok."

"We can?"

"Of course." Her feet were now on the stairs. She said nothing more as she disappeared from the common room.

Draco sat on the couch in stunned silence as the images of what had just transpired played through his head.

"I did the right thing, right?"

_If that's what you think._

Damn the voice in his head. "Of course I did. It was inevitable."

He'd done the right thing. It _was_ inevitable. Like he'd reasoned before, it was only a matter of time before he tired of her presence like with all the other girls. But Hermione was better than them, someone he'd always want as a friend. This time he'd been gentle, because it was what she deserved. No sleeping with one girl to get another off his back. No yelling or threatening. If it had been a different girl, he wouldn't have been so kind. It was inevitable, and he should've been thankful that it wasn't messier than it had been. Now everything would go back to normal, he thought, and there wouldn't be that awful nagging feeling in the back of his mind.

So why didn't he feel any relief?


	25. Reactions

**Emily**: Don't fret. I want them together too. They just have to be apart for a while.

**Delight Summers**: Um, thanks. I'm glad you enjoy it.

**maevey**: I'm glad I haven't lost you.

**delvakooki**: Yes! Thank you. What are your interpretations?

**blackz**: I hope it's not giving you nightmares or anything. And Hermione is just a confused person, but she won't be so angry at them anymore.

**Soofija**: Oooh.

:laughs evil laugh:

You have no idea what's coming, do you? Oh darn, I shouldn't have said that…

**eventers club**: The end? Not even close.

**princesstiggeroe**: I'm so glad you like the story. Really, hearing that makes my day. Did you ask about the number of chapters before it got taken down? I really don't know…I'd say maybe ten at the most; though don't take my word for it. It could be more.

I actually haven't read HBP yet (and I don't know when I will because I'm dead broke and I can't see any generous people buying it for me). I do know, however, that someone dies (though I don't know who), but as for the rest of the plot, I'm rather in the dark. So, I don't know…should I let you spoil it for me:)

And thanks to **maddudewalking**, **ocardevoli**, **a fan**, **blondejenny**, **Ilovedevonmurray**, **Nathifa Femi**, **MisZHPLoVeR**, and **blonde-brain** for your lovely reviews.

This chapter is actually a little bit longer than most; almost double the normal length, I think. So, enjoy.

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**Reactions **

Her first reaction was to be angry. Really, what person wouldn't be angry after having been dumped, especially in such a manner, with no explanation at all? But Hermione fought the instinct. Being angry and hurt and upset, collapsing on her bed in tears and moping like her pet had just died, would only give Draco the satisfaction of knowing that he'd actually meant something to her. It was illogical to think that he wanted her to hurt like that, of course. He'd seemed so distraught; he couldn't even hold her gaze for more than a few seconds.

But that changed nothing. Yes, he didn't exactly seem happy about what he was saying, but the words had left his mouth nonetheless. Hermione had more than a suspicion that he wasn't giving her the entire truth; and if so, why would she want to be with him anyway? That was what she told herself. It had all been a game, and she'd been played magnificently. She thought of all the other girls Draco had been with and laughed. She was just like them. He'd seduced her in a matter of moments, and had thrown her away in even less. What was worse was that she'd seen it coming, but obviously she hadn't put up enough of a fight, because here she was, trying to figure out how she'd let the last few months happen.

And for the first time in a long time, Hermione was thinking clearly. She realized she hadn't been doing that from the very moment Draco had entered her life right up to this point. Her thoughts had been hazy in all the time they'd been together. There had been no hesitation—just action, and lots of it. She vaguely wondered where the real Hermione had gone; maybe she'd taken a vacation and left this person here to fend for herself, with no common sense and only her newly-discovered hormones to drive her. And what a job she'd done. Things had turned out so differently from what she'd had planned for herself. She'd had no intentions of losing her virginity at this age, to someone like Draco Malfoy. She had no intentions of doing any of what she'd done.

And she'd lost her friends in the process. Could she feel any stupider at the moment? All along they'd been trying to tell her to stay away from Draco, to think about what she was doing, and she'd just pushed them away. That was the thought that really made her want to cry. But maybe there was a chance to get them back. There'd be a lot of told-you-so's, and maybe a bit more silence for a few days, but it would all work out in the end. It had to. With not a little effort, Hermione managed to pull herself into a standing position and leave her room. She quietly walked down the stairs, hoping that Draco wasn't still in the common room. He wasn't. She quickly walked over to the portrait and left the dorm in the direction of the Gryffindor towers.

The Gryffindor common room was surprisingly empty when she entered; Hermione had thought there'd be at least a few loiterers at this hour, but apparently everyone had gone to bed. Well, it was later than she thought. She climbed the few stairs up to the girls' dormitory and opened the door. Ah, that explained it. If she were not mistaken, every Gryffindor female was awake, either gossiping in large groups or having girl-to-girl talks in semi-private corners. She searched the room for a sight of red hair, and was surprised to find Ginny attempting to go to sleep in the midst of all the noise.

Ginny noticed Hermione too and eyed her warily as the brunette approached her bed.

"Hey, Ginny."

"Hi…" Ginny sat up. "Here," she shifted on the bed, "sit down."

Hermione felt instantly remorseful. Here Ginny was, being just as pleasant as ever; and she'd been ignoring the girl. What to say now?

"He broke up with me," Hermione blurted out.

"What!"

Hermione sat down and faced Ginny. "I know I'm being selfish right now, but I really need you."

"Hmm…Let's go to your dorm. It's kind of loud in here, don't you think?"

"Ok."

The two girls stood and weaved their way through the crowd. Once outside of the towers, Ginny spoke again.

"Draco broke up with you?"

"Yes."

"Hmmm…"

They walked along in silence, Hermione glancing backwards every so often to make sure that they were alone, though no one should have been still awake at that hour.

"Why were there so many people awake?" Hermione asked as she opened the portrait door. Ginny followed through, glancing at Draco's staircase, before following Hermione up to her own room.

"I'd think you'd remember since you and Draco planned it…The Hogsmeade weekend is coming up. Everyone's excited since it's the last chance they have to do Christmas shopping and be with the love of their life." Ginny said this all very sarcastically as she plopped down on Hermione's bed. "But I guess you're not going to that, are you?"

"Nope," Hermione agreed as she sat next to Ginny.

"So what happened?"

"Well…" Hermione launched into her description of what had happened just hours ago. Ginny looked sufficiently interested and immediately began questioning her when she finished.

"And he didn't give you any actual reasons for the breakup?"

"Nope."

"Hmmm." Ginny looked as if she were storing the information in a memo book in her mind.

"I can't believe I was so stupid. I knew about his past, and for some reason I thought I was different."

Ginny said nothing, and the two sat in silence. Every once in a while Hermione would look up to find herself the recipient of an expression she could only call distrustful—guarded at best.

"Ginny, I'm sorry I didn't listen to you guys. I feel so stupid now. I don't know what I was thinking. I guess I wasn't thinking at all."

Ginny sighed. "It's ok, Hermione. We just—we really didn't understand what was going on with you two. But can you blame us? And then the letter…So we really didn't trust him. But what you said doesn't make sense. I'd have bet half my galleons that he had an evil plan and you were tied up in it. But you say he broke up with you? That just doesn't make sense…"

Hermione should've been angry that Ginny was still suspicious of Draco because of the letter, but it strangely had no effect on her. The letter—of course. She hadn't thought of it when she was going through the dozens of possible reasons behind their breakup. But maybe that was it. Maybe he'd lied and really was going to be a Death Eater. But she couldn't determine what the truth was anymore, not in this situation. And it didn't matter in any case. Whatever they'd had was now obsolete. Her friends were the important ones in her life.

"So are you really going to stay friends with him?"

Hermione looked up. Ginny was eyeing her, waiting for her answer.

"I guess so. What else is there to do?"

"You mean you're still going to talk to him?"

"I said I would…"

"So you're fine with this? You mean you don't want to know what his reasoning is? Or try and get back together with him?"

Hermione laughed. "Of course I'm fine. And why would I want to get back together with him?"

Ginny gave her a blank stare.

"I have no intentions of getting involved in any more relationships anytime soon," Hermione continued.

"You've only had one relationship."

"And it only took me one to figure out what I've always thought was true. Boys are stupid. I've spent enough time with Harry and Ron to know just how dumb they can get."

"Ok, that's true. But Harry and Ron are special cases. Not every guy is a complete idiot."

"Show me one who doesn't act randomly stupid and I'll believe you."

"A good point…but seriously, Hermione, you're really going to do this?"

"Do what, be his friend? Why not?"

"Don't know…It might be a little difficult, seeing as you've slept with him so many times. Multiple, multiple, multiple—"

"We can still be friends, I think. And—well, we can be friends again too, right?" Hermione said hopefully.

"Hmm…" Ginny relaxed on the bed. "Well, you did treat us quite badly…"

"I know…" Hermione grinned. "You're having a great time making me feel guilty about this, aren't you?"

"Well, yes. But since you've figured me out, I'll stop. But in all seriousness, Hermione…I never thought you'd let a male come between us like that—"

"I know, I know. And I'm really sorry about it."

"Well, good. I've missed you, you know. And so have Harry and Ron."

Hermione frowned. "I'm going to have to apologize to them too…"

"Don't worry about it. They'll come around quite easy." Ginny rose from the bed. "I think I'm going to go back to the dorm now. I'm kind of sleepy."

"Ok. See you at breakfast?"

"Right."

Hermione felt significantly better after Ginny had left. Things were looking up. In a matter of hours, she'd be back with her friends. Things would be fine, and she would put this experience entirely behind her. Although, how she would put the 'experience' behind her—Draco in other words—was completely beyond her range of thought. Head duties, sharing this dorm—it seemed almost impossible with all the time she'd have to spend with him. It would definitely be one of the hardest things she'd done. But she had always been up to any task. And she was determined not to crack, or show that she'd been hurt. Had she even? Maybe she'd discover in a few days that she actually had no substantial feelings for him, which would go right along with the theme of their relationship. That would be a blessing. And if she did—well, she'd learned a thing or two about pretending from Draco, and she'd put her knowledge to good use. There were no worries anymore; she was just attributing more importance to the relationship than it had deserved.

* * *

"Wake up you fools. We've got her back." 

Harry found himself being roughly shaken awake. He rolled over and looked at his clock. It was three in the morning.

"Ginny, what are you doing?" he mumbled groggily. But she was already over at Ron's bed, slapping him on the head in her haste to awake him. The older redhead mumbled and yelled at the same time, finally sitting up.

"I'm thinking it was a bad idea to tell you to let us know immediately whenever something happened with Hermione," Harry said. Well, he was awake now. He rolled off the bed. "Let's go downstairs."

The trio quickly settled into the middle of the common room. Ron was beginning to fall back to sleep, so Ginny quickly began her reiteration of Hermione's tale.

"So you mean to tell me that Malfoy willingly broke up with her? Hmmm." Harry rubbed his chin. "That doesn't make sense. He's supposed to be seducing her so he can take her to Voldemort or something."

Ginny frowned. "Yeah, well, that's what I said. Maybe he really wasn't up to anything."

"Hey, you agreed that there was something suspicious about the letter."

"Only because you forced me into it."

"You showed us the letter in the first place—"

"Hey, guys, can we not argue right now?" Ron said. "I just want to go back to sleep." He rubbed his face. "Here's an idea. Maybe…Malfoy never had an evil plan in the first place. Maybe he really doesn't hate Muggles like Hermione says. Maybe he liked her in the beginning but just can't get past his dirty womanizing roots, and so now they're broken up."

Harry gave him an incredulous look bordering on disgust. "Ron, that's just sleepy talk."

"Obviously. Even so, I'm going back to bed." Ron stood and left the room.

Harry followed him with his eyes then turned to Ginny.

"You know," she said, "Ron had a point. Maybe Malfoy isn't as bad as we thought. I mean, if Hermione could fall for him…"

Harry said nothing. Apparently everyone else was determined to think that Malfoy had suddenly become this wonderful person. He didn't understand how they weren't more worried, but realized he was defeated on that point.

"I doubt it," he said. "I still don't like him."

"And it's fine that you do. I don't trust him that much either. But he hasn't done anything suspicious. And until he does, we can't really worry. After all, Hermione's still ok, right?"

He grumbled his agreement.

"Go to sleep, Harry. You guys will make up in the morning. I saw her face and how she talked. She really wants us all to be friends again." Ginny climbed the stairs to the girls' dormitory and disappeared.

Well, Ginny had said it. He was completely justified in disliking Malfoy. But at least he didn't have to worry about the evil blond-headed git having his slimy hands all over Hermione anymore. She was safe for now, and that was all that mattered. Harry comforted himself with these thoughts as he left the common room and returned to bed.

* * *

Draco had seen the little redhead following Hermione up to her room. So it had begun. She'd be back with those overprotective Gryffindor fools by the morning. And she was. The happy sight of the two Weasleys and Potter surrounding her greeted him as he entered the Great Hall for breakfast. Draco strode over to the Slytherin table and tried not to look at them as he began his meal. But he couldn't help it. He just found her interesting; that was all. 

Potter was whispering something in her ear, and she smiled. Then he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and squeezed her to his chest. The fool looked genuinely happy. Strangely enough, Draco was distracted by the fact that the younger Weasley was looking at him. _Not another girl, not right now…_ But she was giving him a rather knowing look; almost as if she'd found out his secret and pitied him. He narrowed his eyes and turned away. Looking at their table had obviously been a bad idea. He braced himself instead for the displeasure that would be Potions and the first time he would talk to her after their breakup.

* * *

Hermione entered the Great Hall the next day in an anxious state. Ginny was already there, though, giving her a welcoming look and beckoning her over to the open spot next to her—and Harry. Why was she feeling nervous? These people were just her friends. She sat down, and said hello to Ron, who was sitting on the other side of Harry, and Ginny, and then finally Harry himself. He only nodded, but continued giving her a very focused gaze. 

Strangely enough, she felt as though she had to answer to him first.

"Harry," she began, "I know this is going to sound really stupid, but…well, Draco and I broke up yesterday, and I really want us to all be friends again. I mean, not just because he broke up with me and I'm suddenly lonely and wanting company, but because I realized that I've been really stupid about this whole situation and I've really missed you guys. I don't know what I was thinking." Harry didn't say anything, so she continued. "I was just—"

"I don't think we can accept that," Ron said from the other side of Harry. Hermione raised worried eyes to his face. He grinned. "Oh, I'm just kidding, Hermione. Glad to know you still like us." He turned back to his meal.

Hermione smiled. Ah, Ron, always the joker. But Harry still hadn't said anything. He seemed to be studying his plate way too intently, and then he looked up. "Well, of course we want to be friends," he said. "Welcome back. I've missed you."

"I missed you too," she said, and he hugged her.

Hermione let out a long breath of relief. It had gone more easily than she'd expected. She'd thought there'd be more anger, or silence, or some sort of negative reaction. But no, they were all content. Gods, could it get any better?

She couldn't help but sneak a look over at the Slytherin table. Draco was eating his breakfast with that unreadable expression on his face. She sighed and looked away, trying to focus on the newest joke Ron was telling. So he really did mean what he'd said. Oh well—if he didn't care, why should she?

* * *

**Author's Note**: I've noticed that rather a few people are upset by the breakup, and I have to say: DON'T BE. This is a happy romance, and they will be together—eventually. Just don't give up on me/them. 

I actually liked this chapter a lot. I can't even say why. But I was just so inspired when I was writing it, and I actually think it's one of the best yet. So, review and let me know what you think, pretty please please…

coldlove


	26. Reactions Continued

I'd like to thank **writerchicky1425**, **blonde-brain**, **HikariAme**, **NorthStar2005**, **NothingIsTrivial**, **eventers club**, and **zurkie** for your reviews. And check out the author's note at the end, please.

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**Reactions Continued**

She was already inside the classroom when Draco entered. Hermione sat looking through her bag for what he assumed was her quill. He looked over to the far end of the classroom to where Potter and Weasley sat. The former was eyeing him rather unhappily. Draco wanted to yell out, 'hey, guess what, you can't keep me away from her', but he resisted the urge. He sat down on the bench and waited for her to speak.

"Hey," she said without even looking up.

Draco frowned at her unaffected response. Since when did girls speak to him in such a nonchalant manner after he'd broken up with them? He looked over at Potter and Weasley again. Potter was positively fuming now, although Draco couldn't tell why; it pleased Draco all the same. Weasley was simply regarding him with the same knowing expression Draco had seen on the younger redhead's face, and it was rather annoying. Maybe it just ran in the family.

Draco turned away. "I assume you told your friends," he said.

"What? Yeah—not right now, Snape's starting the lesson," Hermione said.

Draco frowned. So she intended to ignore him, did she? He tuned into Snape's drone. Well, he already knew how to make this potion, and all the other potions Snape taught. He looked over at Hermione. She was intently focused on what the professor was saying, scribbling away at her scroll. Draco smiled. She never changed.

And neither did her friends. What was up with the two Weasleys he didn't know, and probably didn't want to. Both had looked at him as if they pitied him, especially—what was her name?—Ginny. What did Hermione tell them anyway?

And Potter. Draco would bet half his allowance that Potter had it bad for Hermione. He saw the way Potter looked at her, as if she were the most amazing thing he'd ever seen. The loser just didn't know how to make a move, and Draco sincerely hoped he'd never learn. It was bad enough that now she was going to be friendly with them again. Chances were he'd never see her now because she'd always be with those Gryffindors losers. Draco had been completely honest when he'd asked for a friendship. He couldn't imagine what it would be like not to talk to Hermione. Really, she was his only true friend (besides Blaise) and going back to a rather lonely and boring existence without her didn't exactly appeal to him.

"Draco?"

"Hmmm?"

"The potion."

He looked up; Hermione was eyeing him with a rather confused expression.

"Sorry," Draco said. "I was just a little distracted."

"Uh huh. I can just start it myself if you want."

"Ok…"

Hermione looked at him as if she wanted to ask something, but, with a shrug, she just began preparing ingredients for the cauldron.

"Do you want to stir?" she asked.

"Sure."

Once again, she was scribbling away at her notes. Draco wondered what she could possibly be writing now, so he asked her.

"Just some extra information I'm sure Snape doesn't think anyone was listening to."

She fell silent once more, so Draco thought maybe he should make some conversation.

"So you're going to Hogsmeade this weekend, right?"

Hermione looked up. "Actually, Draco…I'd rather not have points taken off Gryffindor. We can talk about it later, though." She checked her watch and looked at their potion.

Well, that wasn't the response he was expecting. "I don't think Snape's going to take points off—"

"Mister Malfoy."

Draco looked up to find himself the focus of Snape's glare.

"Yes, Mister Malfoy. I understand you two have Head business and other things, but must you constantly discuss them in my class?" Snape looked as if he were expecting an answer to his question. When Draco gave him none, Snape frowned even more than usual, if that were possible. "I guess I'll just have to take points off Slytherin…and you too, Miss Granger."

"Actually, professor," Hermione said, "I wasn't talking."

"You weren't talking?" Snape looked vaguely surprised.

"No, professor."

"Well, then…" Snape looked momentarily baffled. "Ten points from Slytherin I suppose…"

Draco looked over at his partner. She was trying but failing to hide the grin on her face. He narrowed his eyes. The world had suddenly gone wrong. Snape had just taken points off his own house—and from his favorite student. And Hermione was laughing at him. Draco snuck another look over at Potter and Weasley. Surely enough, they were both staring at him, Potter looking rather triumphant and Weasley looking just plain amused. Draco had to very strongly fight the urge to hex Potter right then and there; luckily for The Boy Who Lived, the bell rang, signaling the end of the class.

* * *

"So you never answered my question about Hogsmeade." 

Hermione looked up from her homework. She and Draco had been sitting in their common room for almost a half hour in silence, and she found it rather odd. Not as odd as his suggestion that they work on the Potions essay together, though. She'd been expecting him to be avoiding her like a plague, but there they were, doing homework. It was bizarre.

"Hogsmeade?" she repeated.

"Yeah. Are you going…with your friends?"

Hermione imagined she knew where the conversation was heading. He was looking at her expectantly, as if a negative to his question would make his day perfect. She opted for asking him the same question instead.

"You know I don't have friends," he said.

Hermione looked at him skeptically. "What about Blaise?"

"Blaise will be with the other Slytherins, and I'd rather not spend my free time with them."

Silence.

"Come on, Hermione, it'll be fun. And you know I don't have anyone else to go with."

"And that's the reason I should go with you?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "And because I want you to come."

Hermione was still rather skeptical. It must have shown in her face, because there was a sudden pleading quality in his voice.

"Potter and the Weasleys will be fine without you."

"I wasn't planning on going anyway."

"Even better, then—no one to disappoint."

She considered the idea of a visit to the village. She did like it, of course; everything she loved about the wizarding world was right in that little square. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad. She'd just have to make sure that none of her friends saw her. Come to think of it, if anyone saw her with Draco they'd be shocked…

"No, I don't think so," she said finally.

Of course, Draco was not to be deterred. "Why not?" he asked.

"Well…because…I can't just walk out in public with you, if you remember. You were the one so adamant about not publicizing our relationship before."

"Oh." It seemed like he'd just remembered all the sneaking around they'd done when they were together.

"We can't just sneak around like…we used to," she said.

"Right."

He was looking at her, rather remorsefully, but also as if he'd just hit upon a great idea.

"You can just wear a cloak or something over your head. No one's going to be looking for you anyway."

She could tell that he was satisfied with this solution in the way he looked at her, awaiting her approval.

"_I_ can?" Hermione said.

"Or I could," he said quickly.

Hmmm. Hermione supposed it wasn't such a bad idea. "Fine."

Now Draco was smiling. "Great."

* * *

"So you're going to Hogsmeade with Draco?" Ginny asked. 

"Yes."

"When did he ask you?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "Why does it matter?"

"I'm just curious."

"Two days ago," Hermione acceded as she leaned back on the couch.

"Really? But that was…Wednesday. We've still got an entire other week to go through. Seems to me that maybe he wants to be sure…" Ginny teased.

"Oh, stop it."

"Fine. I just can't believe you're going with him."

"Well, I am. And I'd like it very much if you didn't mention it to Harry or Ron. I already told them I wasn't going at all."

Ginny smirked. "You know you two act exactly like you did before you broke up. It's like nothing's changed at all."

"Well, we're not shagging anymore. That's one definite change."

"Sure. You're still spending all your time with him."

"And there's nothing wrong with that. It's actually kind of surprising. He keeps wanting us to do things together. I'm going to have to talk to him about that…"

"Speak of the devil," Ginny said, cutting her off as Draco entered the Heads' common room.

"Hey, Hermione," he said. "Weasley."

"You could use my first name."

"Well, then—hello, Ginny."

"Draco." The redhead turned to Hermione. "I'll be seeing you later, right?"

"Yeah."

Draco waited for the redhead to leave before he spoke.

"You're going somewhere?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm going to head over to the Gryffindor towers in a bit; I might stay over since we've got no classes tomorrow."

"Oh."

"You have anything planned for this weekend?"

"Nope."

"Well, then, you should find out what's going on in your own dorm. I'm sure you haven't been there in a while."

"Oh really?"

"Yes really. When you spend all your time with one person it doesn't leave much room for others."

Draco said nothing.

"Why don't you see how Blaise is doing? Have you two talked lately?"

Perhaps she was right. Maybe he would go visit the Slytherin dungeons.

"I actually haven't," he admitted.

"Alright then. I'm think I'm going to go now." Hermione rose from the couch and walked over to the portrait. "See you later."

Draco watched her disappear with more than just a little irritation. He had the distinct feeling that he'd just been dismissed. If so, it had been a perfectly executed brush-off. As annoying as it was, however, Hermione had a point. He was a little curious as to what Blaise was doing. The two hadn't talked since that stupid bet which had resulted in, well, this. The problem he encountered when hanging out with Blaise was that it also entailed tolerating the presence of the rest of the Slytherins. For some reason Blaise seemed to find them amiable enough to spend time with on a regular basis. Not that Draco would ever ask Blaise to stop. Draco had enough sense to know that while his sentiments for the Slytherins weren't exactly positive, he was probably the only member of his house who felt that way.

Besides, Blaise was there only when Draco was in serious need of a friend. That was how their relationship worked. Blaise listened and offered advice to Draco; Draco listened and offered advice to Blaise; but only when one or the other was in serious need of it. So, really, Draco saw no point in trying to make their friendship any more than what it was. It was more like a meeting of mutual interests, Draco thought.

And, just like he'd hoped, Blaise was relaxing by the fire when Draco entered the Slytherin commons.

"Draco! You've come back."

"Of course."

"I'm just surprised since you still insist on spending all your time with the Head Girl."

"It's not like I can't do that just because we've broken up."

"Broken up; really?" Blaise looked only mildly surprised. "Doesn't seem like it."

"Friends are allowed to spend time with each other."

"And it works for you?"

"It's working out just fine."

"Really? No sexual urges or anything?"

Draco didn't even bother with an answer.

"So you two are all friendly now?" Blaise asked in an attempt to continue the conversation. "And you're not bored by her existence?"

"Of course not."

"But you're friends with benefits, right?"

"No!"

Draco knew Blaise was only joking, but still…he was trying _not_ to think of her in that context anymore.

"So no sex whatsoever? Hmmm…"

Draco couldn't believe this. "Blaise, you told me to break up with her."

"I just thought you were getting attached to some really good sex…"

"You bet me that I couldn't last without it for a week, and you were right."

"Bet shmet. You take things too seriously."

"_I_ take things too—"

Draco realized that Blaise was right. Here he was chewing out one of the only friends he had when Blaise was just giving him an honest opinion.

"Why don't you take a seat, Draco?"

A good suggestion. Draco realized he was still standing even though he'd been in the room for a good five minutes. He took the seat next to Blaise and closed his eyes. "I don't even know why I'm here."

"Because you want to talk to me," Blaise said rather smugly. "So you mean to tell me that you think this Gryffindor chick is a friend?"

"Why is that so hard to believe?"

"Let's take a look at your past. What female do you still associate with who you've also slept with? It's just surprising, that's all. But," Blaise rose, "acceptable, I suppose. I'm off to my own business now. I'll be seeing you around more, I hope?"

Draco nodded and Blaise disappeared from the room.

_Ditched once again. _Though he shouldn't feel so resentful since he was the one who systematically avoided being in his dorm. Well, now that Blaise was gone, there was no point in being here. Draco didn't want to be caught off guard by the females of his house and have to endure their not-so-subtle attempts to get into his pants, so he left.

Draco returned to a quiet, empty dorm. Knowing that Hermione hadn't yet returned he wondered where she was at such an hour, and then whether or not she really was going to spend the night over in the Gryffindor towers.

_It's only ten, _his conscience said. _There's still the chance that she'll be back tonight._

"Ten is late for her."

_Lately it hasn't been._

"It was late when we were together."

_Right now you're not together, are you?_

"I know that."

Damn his traitorous conscience. It was always saying things he'd rather not hear. Draco ignored the thoughts running through his head and decided he should just go to bed. Why would he wait up for Hermione anyway? It wasn't like she couldn't take care of herself, and with her friends, especially that stupid Potter, always hanging around her, she was safe—even though Draco didn't like to admit it.

* * *

Well, yes, the quick updating many of you might remember (if you're even still reading) from before the story was first taken down. But now the frequent updates are because I've just realized that I want to have this story finished by the end of the month, even though that's probably not going to happen. Well, as soon as possible then. 

One reviewer asked how many chapters were left to the story, and I believe I said ten. I'm not so sure about that anymore. It could be less, now that I think about it. The planning in my head just isn't working out, so I have no idea how long a chapter is anymore. But anyways, keep reading, and leave a review if you feel so inclined. They really make my day…

coldlove


	27. Hogsmeade

**Anon**: Why did you not like it in the beginning?

**HiraTsubasa**: Oh thank you. I'm glad it's enjoyable and understandable. You say you can imagine these things happening? Awesome…

The best way I can explain Draco's nonsensical behavior is this: when he made the decision to end their romantic relationship, he though he was only interested in her for sexual reasons. But by that point he knew that he also liked her personality and company, and definitely considered her to be a friend. He just didn't reconcile the two and come to the conclusion that, hey, maybe I actually really like/love this girl; and I also happen to really enjoy the physical relationship too.

For someone who's always only had sexual relations with girls, I imagine such a lengthy relationship to be a new and strange thing. He's used to dumping the girl after sex because he loses interest almost immediately, but that hasn't happened with Hermione. So he assumes, oh wow, the sex must be really sustaining my interest in her (and ignores the other more substantial feelings because he's never encountered them before).

I don't even think that's how anyone's—much less a guy's—mind would work. I'm just making this up as I go along. Errr, did I even answer your question? I hope so…

I actually have been trying to be funny, but in such a subtle way that I thought only I'd find it amusing. I like to put them in absurd situations. And then there's Harry. He's just ridiculous in my opinion, and therefore, really funny.

Ok, I'm going to shut up now…

**maddudewalking**: I think they just enjoy each other's company, and so missing each other at this point isn't really a problem…Oh, who am I kidding, of course they miss each other! They just don't know it yet…

**NorthStar2005**: Yes, yes…they will be together…

**princesstiggeroe**: There will be one more fic this summer, and then I don't think I'll be able to write for a very long time, like another year or so. After I started this story I started having so many ideas for other fics (ha, yeah), and I'm kind of sad that I won't be able to set them in motion for a while. But schooling is just going to take up too much time for me to write a proper fic, and I only want you guys to have the best. :) But you never know, maybe one day I'll spontaneously decide to start another.

Why did Hermione accept the invitation? Here are my theories:

-She wants to be a good friend to Draco seeing as she knows he doesn't have many others (and imagine the adorable look on his face when he was asking…).

-Though she avoids him, she really enjoys Draco's company and wants to spend time with him (even though she doesn't realize this) because she misses the closeness of their previous relationship. The evasive tactic is her way of trying to get over their breakup—she thinks distance will somehow get her reacquainted with being alone.

**DrAcO'sblackrose**: Hopefully that won't happen, unless someone wants to call me on my title again…

**eventers club**: Lately I've just been finding myself so inspired. The story's already finished in my head, and I'm just itching to get it down and see what it looks like in written form. But no, no rushing, I promise you.

**zurkie**: He is, isn't he? But I think it's kind of funny. And thanks for the offer, but I'm basically on the computer all the time too, so I've got plenty of time to stare at the screen…

And of course, thanks to **LilSexyG16**, **allie**, and **padfootedmoony** for your reviews.

* * *

**Hogsmeade **

A week had passed, and the Hogsmeade weekend had finally arrived. Draco for some reason found himself in an excited state. He had no plans in the village besides strolling around the village with Hermione and maybe checking out the latest brooms, but even those little things seemed like they would make his day.

"You ready for Hogsmeade?" Draco yelled through Hermione's portrait.

"Calm down, Draco, I'm coming." Hermione opened the door to find Draco's silvery eyes looking down at her. He quickly turned around when she stepped outside and walked down the stairs.

"It's not like you're a little kid and I'm candy," she said as she followed him into the common room.

"Older kids are allowed to like candy."

Ok, so she hadn't meant to give her response that particular meaning. Draco looked amused, and maybe a bit more, by his joke, and Hermione gave him a look that hopefully conveyed that she had no intentions of flirting with him.

"Just kidding," he quickly said and turned away.

"Well, anyway," she said as she stuffed a cloak into her bag, "let's hurry up. I want to be able to eat lots of breakfast." Hermione left the portrait and began walking to the Great Hall.

"Slow down," Draco called out from behind her.

Hermione stopped and waited for him to catch up with her.

"You know, you could eat with me if you put that cloak on and the cloak over your head," Draco said hopefully as he eyed her bag. "None of the Slytherins would notice. They'll all be too busy worrying about the weekend to notice another shady character in their midst with a hood on."

Hermione smiled. "Well…" he looked so hopeful, "I can't. Harry and Ron and Ginny will want to see me before they head off. We're very close like that, you know."

"I'm your friend too," Draco said in a tone that reminded her specifically of a seven-year-old with the face to match. He was pouting one of the most serious pouts she'd seen on him yet.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I know…" She continued on down the hall.

"No, I'm serious," Draco said, stopping her. "You really are my best friend."

Well, how could she say no to that face? He looked just so…needy at that moment. "Ok, fine," she said, "but if we get caught, you'd better have a good excuse ready."

Hermione continued down the corridor, then stopped at the entrance to the Hall.

"Wait," she said, "should we go in together?"

Draco peeked over her head. She was apprehensive about the Gryffindors, of course. He looked over at their table. Hermione's three friends in particular were deeply immersed in conversation. He figured it would be safe enough for them to walk through without being noticed. Draco turned around to find Hermione already putting on her cloak. He pulled the hood over her head as she pulled it closed. Hermione grinned up at him.

"I feel like a little kid trying not to get in trouble," she whispered.

"Me too," Draco said, smiling. "Come on."

Hermione followed him quickly over to the Slytherin table and took her seat next to him in the only spots left on the bench. Needless to say, it was strange. Here she was surrounded by a bunch of people who would jump for the opportunity to do any and everything evil to her, and they didn't even know it. Draco was right though; they didn't seem to notice anything as the pair sat down. Hermione made sure to keep her head gaze focused on the surface of the table as she ate.

"Hey, Draco. Going to Hogsmeade today?"

Hermione flinched. So as to not be exposed, she slowly looked up and then back down again. On her right was that Blaise Zabini character, talking over her head to Draco, who was sitting on her left. She sighed in relief that she hadn't been noticed.

Draco's response came slowly. "Yeah…"

"Good. A few of us are going to meet up after a while at—"

"Actually, I already have plans."

"Oh." Blaise said, looking to the left and down. "I didn't notice you there, Hermione."

Hermione nearly choked on her toast. She looked up at Draco in dismay, but he didn't seem to share in her worry.

"You know you're taking quite the risk by having her here," Blaise said. "Do you seriously expect not to be noticed?"

"There are ways, Blaise," Draco simply stated.

Hermione sputtered out her shock. "How does—did you tell—"

"No, Blaise is just a very perceptive person. Don't worry, Blaise won't say anything."

"Hope you two have fun," Blaise said before turning away.

Ok, that was just weird. "How did Blaise know it was me?" Hermione whispered

"Blaise knows a lot, even the things I don't say out loud. You don't have anything to worry about, ok? Come on," Draco said as he stood, "everyone else is leaving."

* * *

Hermione was animated as soon as she stepped foot into the village. She was glad she came. There was a light layer of snow over everything, making everything shimmer, and despite the cold, Hermione couldn't help but smile. The town just looked so beautiful in the morning sunlight, and there were so many stops she could make, she wasn't sure she'd have enough time for all the shops.

Draco pulled up his hood and stood next to Hermione. "Where do you want to go first?" he asked.

"Let's go to Honeydukes," she said, pointing towards the closest store and pulling up her hood at the same time.

"Why are you doing that?"

"Oh, I don't know; I feel a little guilty having you suffer in anonymity alone," she joked.

"Fine by me," he said. "Lead the way."

The smell of cinnamon and chocolate immediately hit the pair as they entered the shop. Hermione inhaled deeply and smiled. "I love chocolate," she said happily.

"Well, then come on," Draco said anxiously, "there are loads of it right over there."

It turned out that Draco had as much of a sweet tooth as Hermione did. He immediately wandered off in search of his favorite candies, leaving Hermione by herself in the chocolate aisle.

She was definitely happy that she'd agreed to this trip after all. Draco had proven to be some really good company. She could tell that Draco was going out of his way to amuse her, but it didn't take away from the simple charm of his ridiculous jokes or the happiness in his smile when she laughed at him. She imagined where Ron and Ginny and Harry were right now, and sighed. If only she could get all of her friends together. But she knew it was impossible. Draco was unwavering in his decision to conceal his non-pureblood relations, and at times it stung. But at the same time, Hermione knew that he was right. From his accounts of his father's fanaticism, Hermione believed almost as strongly as Draco did that he was safer keeping some things private.

"Let's go, we've still got a few more places to stop at."

She hadn't even noticed that Draco had appeared at her side. "Sure," she said as she followed him to the counter. The pair paid for an insanely large amount of sweets and finally left the shop.

Once back outside, Hermione started up the conversation again.

"You know, I really like this town. It's so pretty. I could really imagine living here one day."

Draco seemed amused at this revelation. "You obviously haven't seen much of the wizarding world—" He stopped mid-sentence as Hermione suddenly ran over to a nearby shop. He quickly followed and stopped at her side. She was peering into the glass with a dreamy expression.

"That is positively the most beautiful necklace I've ever seen," she murmured.

"That one?" he said, pointing. She nodded.

Draco had to agree, it was quite the jewelry piece. Two intertwined gold chains adorned with hanging red stones. Too bad they weren't a nicer jade color, he thought.

Suddenly Hermione stood and turned away from the window. "Alright, let's go. We don't have much time left. I was hoping we could have some butterbeer in The Three Broomsticks before we left."

"You mean you don't want to look at this necklace anymore?"

"What? No." Hermione had already turned around and was walking down the street.

Draco quickly followed in her footsteps, confused. He noticed the quick glance back she gave to the jewelry store window, however, before he caught up with her in the middle of the square.

"Let's go to the Quidditch shop now," he said.

Hermione frowned. "But I wanted to go to the bookstore."

Draco groaned. "Well, we don't have enough time to go both places and to The Three Broomsticks. How about we just meet up there in a bit?"

"Well, ok. Twenty minutes?"

"Twenty minutes."

* * *

Harry was looking forward to getting back to Hogwarts, unlike the rest of his company. Ginny and Ron were still pulling him in all directions, wanting to go to this shop and that. He really just wanted to visit the Quidditch shop one last time before they left.

The two redheads were in an argument about which store would be their last stop when Harry noticed them. They were two suspicious figures, standing in the middle of the square, both with their hoods pulled up although it wasn't necessarily that cold. Sirens went off in his head immediately. What if they were Death Eaters, or some other sort of shady characters roaming the wizarding world? Ok, so maybe he was overly anxious now that he was aware of Voldemort's more than intense desire to kill him, but still, one could never be too cautious.

The pair suddenly split up, the smaller one, who he assumed to be female, going in the direction of the bookstore; the taller one went towards the Quidditch shop. Harry turned to his friends.

"I'm going to go to the Quidditch shop one last time. I'll meet you before we head back to the castle."

Harry didn't wait for them to respond as he sped off to the store. He walked inside to see the figure slip into a row of broomsticks and cautiously followed. The man was examining an older model of the Firebolt when Harry entered the aisle, and didn't seem to notice the raven-headed boy. Suddenly, Harry stopped. He would recognize that outline anywhere, from the dozens of times he'd chased him across the Quidditch pitch in pursuit of the snitch. And if this was Malfoy, then chances were…the other person with him had been Hermione.

"Malfoy!"

Draco was startled to find his hood being pulled off his head and a pair of very angry green eyes glaring at him.

"What the hell are you doing, Potter! Why are you touching me?"

Draco took this opportunity to place his hand in Harry's face and forcefully push the kid out of his personal space. Harry's hands detached from Draco's cloak and he stumbled back into a pile of Quidditch gear.

Draco practically growled at him. He'd been looking at a broomstick in peace and quiet, wondering if maybe he should add this one to collection as he'd always enjoyed the Firebolt line. And now Harry Potter was accosting him in the middle of a deserted Quidditch shop. Very well; he'd been itching for an opportunity to bash Potter's face in anyway.

Well, maybe he wouldn't. Draco was sure Hermione wouldn't be too happy to hear that he'd beaten up one of her friends on their day off.

"Where's Hermione?"

Draco looked up. Potter was still eyeing him with an entirely too hostile expression for not having just been accosted.

"What?"

"You heard me Malfoy. Where's Hermione, and what is she doing here?"

Ah, so this was what all the anger was about. Draco couldn't help but smirk at Harry as he straightened his cloak.

"Where do you think she is?" Draco asked. Gods, but Potter was an easy one to rile up. The raven-headed boy looked positively furious with every word that came from Draco's mouth, and he hadn't even begun to insult him yet.

"Malfoy…I saw you two outside…" Harry groaned. "You really are up to something, aren't you? At first I didn't want to believe that Hermione would ever be a part of one of your evil plans, but I guess here's the proof. Why'd you bring her here?"

Draco stared at Harry as if he'd suddenly lost his scar. Obviously it was best that he deal with this problem quickly so he could get of this shop. He still had a butterbeer with Hermione that he was rather looking forward to.

"Potter, consider this: maybe she wanted to come with me—"

"Then why didn't she tell us?"

"Hmm, maybe because of a reaction like this? Seriously Potter, why don't you just calm yourself down? I know some excellent potions that work on relieving stress." Draco laughed; the boy was fuming at that simple suggestion, and looked like he was about to attack. "Save your anger for something worthwhile. If you think I don't know what this hissy fit is about, you're obviously more whacked than I thought."

Harry's expression was now an ugly mixture of anger, hate, and surprise. Draco continued. "Don't worry about who Hermione is interested in—you're definitely not a candidate." Draco paused in anticipation of Harry's reaction. Surprisingly, all he did was smile.

"Malfoy, you really think that's why I don't like you being around Hermione?" Harry laughed. "Do you know how dangerous of a person you are to be around? It's all in who you are—you and your family—and Hermione shouldn't have to suffer just because she's nice enough to give you the time of the day every once in a while." Harry looked like he was about to leave, but then he stopped. "Oh, and _Draco_," Harry said with as much malice as he could possibly fit into the name, "you're old news. Keep in mind who Hermione spends her time with now."

And just like that Harry Potter was gone. And lucky him. Draco would have given anything to beat Potter with a bundle of broomsticks at that moment. But no, it was best not to dwell on the negative. Draco stormed out of the Quidditch shop in a reasonable amount of anger, but quickly calmed himself when he realized that was probably not what Hermione would want to see.

* * *

"Is there something on your mind?"

Draco looked up into Hermione's worried eyes and brought himself back to reality. He should be focusing on the person in front of him, not thinking up ways to off Potter before the vacation came.

"You just look like you were focusing hard on something, that's all." Hermione leaned back in her chair and sighed. "This is so good."

Draco had to agree. They were sitting at a rather small table for two in The Three Broomsticks, cramped amongst the dozens of other customers in the shop. And yet, while Draco was one to appreciate his personal space, he didn't mind very much at all.

"So what did you get me?" Hermione asked. "I hope it wasn't something Quidditch."

Draco smiled. "You think I went off to buy you a present? Sorry, I forgot…"

Hermione frowned and yet Draco found it rather amusing. Of course he'd gotten her something. It was almost endearing that she was so transparent in that area. He'd run over to the jewelry shop as quickly as possible and bought that necklace. He asked if they'd somehow had an emerald version of it, but the jeweler said they hadn't. So Draco had settled for the original. He was currently running his thumb over the red suede box hidden under his cloak and smiled

"So what did you get me?" Draco asked. "I hope it wasn't a book."

"Oh, of course not," Hermione laughed. "I don't do my shopping this early. It's kind of a tradition. I'll send your present by owl."

"Sneaky…"

Hermione nodded in agreement and began talking about the books she'd picked up at the bookstore. However, Draco's attention was arrested by the person entering the shop—it was Potter—and behind him were the two Weasleys.

"Don't look now, but your friends have just come in," Draco whispered.

Hermione instinctively pulled her hood lower over her face. "Damn," she muttered, which was a pleasant surprise for Draco. Let Potter think what he want, but Hermione was with him at that moment, and not them.

"We don't have to leave," Draco said. "They won't even notice who we are."

Hermione risked a look behind her to see her three friends scanning the tavern for an empty table. She quickly turned back around. "I don't know, Draco…"

"Well, then we'll play it safe. Come on." Draco stood and Hermione followed his action. He'd been really looking forward to finishing off that butterbeer, but he supposed it would have to wait until another time.

The Weasleys didn't seem to even notice the pair, but Harry stiffened when he saw them. Draco couldn't resist the urge to growl in Harry's ear as he and Hermione passed out of the shop.

"Why'd you do that?" Hermione asked when they were outside.

"I couldn't help it. Potter gets on my nerves."

Hermione tried to frown but Draco could tell that she'd found it amusing.

"Come on," Draco said, "let's get back to the castle."

* * *

**Disclaimer **(yeah, these usually aren't at the end of the chapter): I took a bit of a liberty here and added the Quidditch and jewelry shops to Hogsmeade. So, don't sue, but feel free to yell if it bothers you much.

So yeah, I hope I wasn't too lengthy in my responses to your reviews. I've just caught a writing bug and I can't help myself; I'm in rambling mode.

Anyways, one thing to remember: this is a Draco/Hermione fic. I love them together just like I hope you all do. I spend my free time perusing the fanfiction archives for any romances with this pairing that I can find. So don't fear, they will be together, even if it takes a horribly long time.

So, leave a review if you feel so inclined (ah, I always feel so weird asking for those)…

coldlove


	28. The Truth?

**eventers club**: What did you not get?

**Harrison J. Pecans**: Go me…thanks so much. I'm glad I've got you fooled :)

**ILoveMyDraco**: Oh my. I don't know about that one; I can't say there'll be any crushing; yet… :laughs evilly:

Don't you feel just a little sorry for Harry:)

**SlytherinHotness**: Thank you. And let me know if you do. Which reminds me… :runs off to review:

**Remusluver**: Ah, no, I hadn't thought of that.

**SalemWitch**: Does that mean I've missed something that's in HBP?

**Lizzle87**: Ah, I wish I could tell you, but you'll just have to keep on reading…

**HiraTsubasa**: It makes me so happy that you think that.

I was thinking it would be like the sound you'd make just before attacking someone.

**cassie**: I think that if Draco and Hermione didn't end up together, more than a few angry people would show up at my doorstep :D I was thinking of writing a Harry/Hermione romance at some point, though…

And thanks to **Badgurl13a**, **casacrazy**, **padfootedmoony**, **Erin**, **zurkie**, **NorthStar2005**, **draco2hot4me**, **Kace08**, **maddudewalking**, **Soofija**, and **Moonglitter2**. Really. I mean it. Your reviews have definitely put a smile on my face.

* * *

**The Truth?**

Exactly a week after the visit to Hogsmeade, and two weeks until Christmas vacation, Draco was relaxing on the couch in the common room. He was thinking about that particularly pleasant weekend he'd spent with Hermione, and how there hadn't been a repeat since. Unfortunately there had been truth to Harry's words. Now more than ever Hermione spent most of her free time with her friends, and Draco only saw her when she was going in and out of their or when he managed to coerce her into studying with him. Then she would make some excuse, usually along the lines of having finished her homework, and leave for bed or other places (like the Gryffindor common room).

Draco was not to blame for the sudden feelings of loneliness that overcame him whenever Hermione left him for other pursuits. In fact, he should have been quite used to it, and even reveling in the fact that he had so much of his privacy back. Or perhaps it was better to call it solitude. In the past he had enjoyed being alone, as it was the only time Draco had away from his pureblooded 'friends' and to himself. But when Hermione wasn't there, Draco found himself without much to do. He spent more and more of his time outside of the castle on his broom, or perusing the library shelves, or patrolling the hallways and catching the various students he met snogging their mate or engaged in other rule-breaking activities.

The need for all these distractions reminded Draco of the week leading up to their breakup. He was not happy then, and he certainly wasn't happy now. It didn't make sense to him. Why would he suddenly crave her company when not weeks ago he'd identified it as the cause of his unrest? And why did it bother him even more that she was with other people? Especially Potter. For some reason it seemed to Draco that the boy had taken to taunting him as much as possible—albeit in a silent way—as if he knew all of Draco's secrets and was just itching to expose him. Every time Draco saw Hermione with her friends (though as a rule he never looked at her for very long), Potter would fix him with a look Draco could only classify as evil, then smile as if remembering their conversation in the Quidditch shop and the victory he'd won over Draco.

Damn Potter. He was obviously pulling Hermione away from Draco on purpose, and simultaneously enjoying the fact that he was succeeding.

_Perhaps he enjoys her company just as much as you do._

"Right. More like he enjoys me not having her company. That little bastard is evil; I don't care what the wizarding public thinks about Potter. He deserves to have his face shoved into a boiling hot potion…"

"Do you always talk to yourself out loud?"

Draco looked up from his position on the couch. Hermione was regarding him with a suspicious expression on her face from the bottom of her staircase. Draco shifted and sat up as she walked over and took a seat next to him.

"Well, actually," Draco said, "yes, but only sometimes."

Hermione smiled at him. "I do too. Sometimes."

Draco simply looked at her in amazement. Was she voluntarily having a conversation with him?

"So what were you saying about Harry?"

Ah yes, Potter. Draco knew it was unwise to admit that he'd been having unpleasant thoughts about her friends again. But there was no point in avoiding it since he was sure Hermione had heard what he said. He told her so, and unsurprisingly she frowned.

"Draco, really, there's no reason for you to dislike Harry."

"Hermione, you're not me. If you were, you'd see that there are plenty of reasons for me not to like Potter. I don't understand why you hang out with him in any case. He's obviously a very hateful person."

"Hateful?" Hermione laughed. "Are you serious? Harry's one of the nicest people I know. And you'd see that too if you actually took the time to get to know him."

"I beg to differ. Potter hates me just as much as I hate him, and he loves to show it." Draco paused. "He's also rather vindictive, now that I think about it…"

"What!"

Of course she wouldn't believe him over her precious Potter. Draco wondered why he was even having this conversation with Hermione when he knew she was just going to side with her friends. "Never mind," Draco said, turning away.

"No, wait; what were you going to say?"

Hermione was still frowning when Draco turned back to her. Well, she'd asked so she'd just have to accept it. "Like I've said before, I don't expect you to understand when you're hanging out with people who insist on hating me."

"That's not true, Draco. And you're the one who doesn't want to bother changing their opinion of you—"

"How many times have I told you that I can't do that!"

"You could find a way. You just don't want to." Hermione let out a long sigh. "Look, I don't know how you feel about this, but I'm tired of splitting my time between you and everyone else. It doesn't make sense."

Draco scoffed. "You're not _splitting _your time at all. When are we ever together? You're always hanging out with the Weasleys and _Potter. _Gods, I hate that kid," Draco said.

"Don't talk like that, Draco. You make yourself sound jealous." Hermione regretted her words as soon as they came out of her mouth. Draco turned to face her with a positively furious expression on his face. He looked her up and down before he spoke.

"Maybe I am jealous!"

Well, that wasn't what she was expecting. "What!"

"Yes. Maybe I am. Shouldn't I be? You never—" Draco stopped, suddenly feeling sick. This was possibly the worst argument he'd ever had with Hermione, and now she was yelling.

"Why should you be jealous? What's wrong with spending time with my friends—"

"I'm your friend too! What's wrong with me? I need you just as much as they do, and probably more!"

"Are you serious?" Hermione asked. "You asked for this! You broke up with me, and you still expect me to spend all my time with you? And not with my friends? I basically dropped them for you before, and now you want me to do it _again_?"

"Yes—I mean, no! I mean—"

"What _do_ you mean, Draco?"

"I don't know!"

Draco stopped, and Hermione didn't seem to have anything to say so the room fell into silence. Draco looked at Hermione; her cheeks were red and she was still huffing from her extremely long rant. She looked back at him, saying nothing, and they remained silent for a few moments more. Then Hermione looked away.

"I have to go," she said. She quickly ran to the portrait and disappeared.

Draco leaned back into the couch. At what point in the conversation had everything gone so horribly wrong? He figured it was when they'd gotten on the subject of Potter. And then talking about her friends, which was always a testy subject…Well, Draco didn't blame her for running away from him. He'd have done the same thing in her position.

* * *

Hermione was in shock of what had just happened. She'd simply found the subject of his musing interesting when she happened upon him in the common room and had wanted to know more. How could she have possibly known that it would explode into an argument about how she chose to spend her time? Perhaps he'd had a point when he said that she was always off with her Gryffindor friends; she was, after all, in her house common room right now. But truthfully it was almost always just to escape. She came here often simply to be away from Draco, and usually not with the intention of seeing Ginny or Ron or Harry.

It was a fact that Hermione avoided him, despite how much she enjoyed spending time with him. Ridiculous as it might have seemed to anyone else, Hermione's belief was that being away from him served a double purpose of moving things back to normal (or whatever normal would be between them) and preventing her from thinking about Draco too much. Of course at that moment the common room was not serving her in that respect…

"Hey, are you ok?"

Hermione looked up. Harry was looking down at her with a worried expression on his face.

"Oh yeah," Hermione said, "just zoning out. I have to do that once in a while, you know?"

"Right…" Harry took a seat in the chair next to her.

Hermione was already lapsing back into thought when she realized that Harry was watching her as if he were trying to judge her mood.

"Something you want to tell me?" Hermione asked.

"Well…" Harry looked both disturbed and determined as he prepared to speak. "Hermione, I know you were in Hogsmeade with Malfoy."

Hermione inwardly sighed. Great. Chances were that Draco and Harry had met at some point in the day, fought, and now Harry knew that she had lied. Thankfully he didn't seem as upset as she'd anticipated.

"I haven't told Ron or Ginny because I don't want them to be upset with you. I just want to know—why?"

"Did you and Draco have an argument?" Hermione asked in an attempt to change the subject.

"No…Did Malfoy say something to you?"

"No."

Hermione turned away in silence. Here she was in this common room seeking only to relax and avoid her problems for as long as possible. But now that Harry was here, and obviously looking for an explanation (his gaze had not left her face yet) she was seriously considering just going back to her room and hiding there. She sighed; might as well give Harry an answer and leave as soon as possible.

"I don't know…when he asked I didn't really think of mentioning it because I'd already said I wasn't going, and then you'd think I didn't want to hang out with you guys." Unsurprisingly, she sounded stupid even to her own ears.

"You didn't have to hide from us, Hermione. I actually almost didn't notice you. It was only when I saw Malfoy that I figured the other person with him was you. You're sneakier than I thought," Harry said.

Well, at least he wasn't completely upset, Hermione thought. She looked over at him; Harry was silent. "I'm really sorry about that, Harry…"

"It's not like I want you to tell me everything you do. But just—why Malfoy? I know he's your friend," Harry said sensing she would argue, "but, just—look, you know I don't trust him, and I don't think I ever will. That's all."

Of course. Harry looked somewhat troubled at that moment. And knowing that she was the cause of his worry only made that guilty feeling even worse. Hermione looked away as Harry continued.

"I know it's kind of weird and overprotective of me, but you're one of my closest friends. I don't know what I would do if anything happened to you. So I worry all the time. It probably doesn't make sense that Malfoy would hurt you to get to me anyway," Harry said as if trying to convince himself. "Well, in any case, just—"

Harry stopped, which made Hermione look up. She was going to ask him what he was going to say, but then Harry stood.

"Look, er, I know this is pointless to say to you, but just keep yourself safe, ok?"

And then he was gone. Hermione looked around. At some point in their conversation the common room had emptied out, not that it mattered to Hermione. She didn't want to stay there any longer, especially after the conversation she'd just had. Looks like she was going back to her dorm after all.

Hermione slowly walked herself through the corridors of the castle, pieces of the conversation with Harry still floating through her mind. Of course Harry would worry; she should've figured that out a long time ago. Although he didn't voice it, Hermione was well aware that Harry considered anyone associated with him to be in danger. Sirius had been a prime example. Even so, Hermione thought, that shouldn't have given him any reason to worry that a simple Hogsmeade trip would turn out for the worst.

Realizing that she'd reached the entrance to her dorm, Hermione stopped and spoke the password. What greeted her when she stepped inside was slightly unsettling. Draco was sitting on the couch, wearing the exact same expression Hermione had seen the first time she'd encountered him in the common room for the evening. He was staring off into space, and didn't seem to have registered her entrance. It was as if he hadn't moved from that spot for the entire hour she'd been gone.

Looking at him, she remembered that he'd said the same thing weeks ago that Harry had said to her just an hour ago. What was with the males in her life telling her how much they valued her friendship? It was weird and confusing. Both Harry and Draco talked as if they would lose her at any moment, whatever that meant.

"You're back," he said, his eyes scanning her face.

It seemed as if he wasn't going to say anything more to her, and judging from his more than bizarre behavior, Hermione thought it best to just leave Draco to himself until he was back to normal. He was still looking at her, though, even as she walked through the common room and ascended her staircase.

On second thought, maybe she wouldn't just leave him to herself. Thoughts of what had transpired an hour ago came back to her. Hermione turned around and came back down the stairs. Draco was still sitting on the couch, but looked at her as she approached him. Hermione sat down, then turned to face him. His eyes were still on her. In just looking at him Hermione could feel every defense she'd put up crashing down around her. This had been the reason she'd distanced herself from him. She couldn't focus on what was important when his gaze was fixed on her, but Hermione tried anyway.

"Are you worried like Harry that you'll suddenly never see me again?"

Draco's eyes narrowed. "I'm not like Potter."

In that one response Hermione got all the answer she needed. Draco was just being stubborn. Hermione had never thought a friendship would be this complicated, but then again, she was dealing with Draco Malfoy, and she'd never imagined herself calling him a friend. Hermione felt a hug was in order, though up to that point their friendship had been anything but the physical kind. Draco's arms slowly went around her, pulling her head to his chest, and he sighed into her hair. His chest was warm and solid underneath her cheek. Hermione could hear the steady thumping of his heartbeat at her ear.

Draco gratefully held Hermione in his arms. He'd been lost in thought ever since Hermione had left earlier that evening. It was only with her return that the answer to all his questions had dawned on him. She looked exactly like she always did when she entered the portrait, yet he'd still found her incredibly beautiful; and that was the problem. Draco hadn't been surprised that he'd still found her attractive after their breakup; in fact, he'd anticipated it. What he hadn't anticipated was the way in which Hermione would draw his attention whenever he was around her. He'd realized he couldn't keep his eyes off her when she'd entered the common room. And now she had somehow willingly come to him, and letting him hold her…

"Draco," she said, looking up at him, "it's getting kind of late."

Draco nodded. She was right, and he should probably let her go now. But it had been so long since they'd been this close to one another, and Draco didn't want it to end quite yet. She seemed to sense this and relaxed into his chest. Draco lifted a hand to stroke her hair. It was soft like he remembered, and, as he buried his nose in her locks, smelled just like he remembered too, like sugared kiwis and limes.

"You smell good," Draco said.

He could feel her smile against his chest as he continued to play with her hair. Suddenly she looked up at him, as if confused, with eyes that were large and round and brown. She was indisputably beautiful, Draco realized; no wonder he had never been able to keep his eyes off her. His head swam with thought, and yet the vision of her face remained clearly in front of him. Why had he let this go; why had he forced her away? In a flash of clarity, the truth of the past few weeks of their separation appeared to him. He'd pushed Hermione away, and so it made sense that she'd avoided him. How could he have been so stupid? Those eyes, the ones looking up at him right now, and her soft brown hair, and the tiny body clinging to him; those were all things he wanted, and had always wanted. And her smile, and her lips. He wondered if, like the rest of her, they were as soft and warm as he remembered. And he was taking a risk by doing this, but still, Draco lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers. Just to see. And of course they were.

Hermione's eyes were still open when he pulled back. Her breath fell on his lips, soft releases of air. And then she kissed him back, sort of as if she were testing his mouth. It was a long, unhurried kiss; she slowly tasted both his lips with her tongue and then pulled away. And then Hermione just looked at him.

"It was a mistake," Draco blurted. "It was all a mistake."

Hermione nodded but didn't seem to want any more explanation. She simply lifted her hands to the back of Draco's head and ran her hands through his hair and kissed him again. Draco leaned back into the couch as Hermione pulled herself out of his grip and sat down on his knees, her legs on either side of his own.

How could he have forgotten what this felt like? Draco took her lips in another slow kiss, just wanting to savor the taste of her in his mouth. Hermione pulled him closer as his hands moved along the length of her body. He tugged at the bottom of her blouse and released it from her skirt, then slid his hands underneath the fabric and over her back. She pulled away and allowed him to unbutton her blouse, then did the same for his shirt. Draco had wanted to take this slowly, but Hermione was tugging at his belt and he was finding it difficult to resist her.

"Wait, not here," he said. "My room, let's go to—"

"What do you mean, 'I can't get through'—I want to talk to my son!"

Draco stopped talking and froze. Hermione had paled and was looking at the portrait door.

"Ok, then, let him know I'm here! Draco, are you in there?"

That was the unmistakable voice of his father, arguing with the couple in the portrait. Cursing under his breath, Draco stood up from the couch. As he walked to the portrait he fixed his clothes into a more presentable appearance, then took one look back at Hermione, who had just finished buttoning her blouse.

"Yes, father, hold on."

Draco reluctantly pushed open the portrait. Standing there in all his evil majesty was Lucius Malfoy. He was dressed in black robes, of course, which swept the floor as he stepped back. After casting a final look of displeasure around him, Lucius entered the common room. "Draco, I've come to tell you some rather—"

Lucius stopped upon seeing that there was someone else in the room. He quickly eyed Hermione up and down before addressing her. "I'm sorry, Miss—"

"Granger," Hermione supplied.

"Ah yes, well, if you'd excuse us, Draco and I need to discuss something privately."

Hermione eyed the elder Malfoy and stood. "I was just leaving anyway," she said and quickly headed for her room.

Lucius' gaze followed her until she disappeared, then turned on Draco. "What was she doing here?"

"The Head Girl and I were just discussing something," Draco answered, hoping to move the focus of the conversation from Hermione as soon as possible.

"Were you arguing? She looked rather red to me."

"Uhh…yes. I'd forgotten to…uh…patrol yesterday night and she was somewhat angry about it."

"I see." Lucius looked either unconvinced or uninterested, and Draco hoped it was the latter. "Well, as I was saying, I have some interesting news for you. Our Lord…" Lucius lowered his voice to a whisper and looked around, "wants you as soon as possible, meaning that once vacation starts, you will have a place among us. So, keep that in mind as you finish up this term." Lucius looked down at Draco, who'd taken a seat on the couch at the beginning of their conversation. "I must get back to the Manor now." Lucius walked towards the exit, and then stopped, his eyes flicking over to the Head Girl's staircase. "Make sure the only thing you're doing with that mudblood is arguing," he said before the portrait closed behind him.

The suffocating feeling of dread washed over Draco at his father's last words. Of course—Lucius wasn't stupid, not completely—and now he knew that something was going on between Draco and Hermione. And that was enough cause for worry. Up to that point he'd done an incredibly good job of ignoring his father, and the Death Eaters, and the horrible obligation he had to both. Somehow he'd managed to forget about the letter and the rest of his life now that he couldn't escape. But there was no more ignoring those things now. Draco looked over to Hermione's staircase to see her head poking out from behind the wall. Oh gods, she'd heard it all.

"Is he gone now?" Hermione asked. She didn't move from her position at the top of the staircase.

Draco nodded and she came down and sat on the couch next to him.

"What was that about?"

Hermione was worried; Draco saw it clearly in her eyes. He didn't know if he could say this to her.

"He just came to tell me that my mother isn't doing too well," Draco said, "and that she's in the hospital right now."

She accepted it, of course. Hermione wrapped her arms around him, asking if he was ok, and he nodded. He didn't want to lie to her; if anyone deserved his honesty it was Hermione. But to tell her the truth now—he just couldn't do it. The truth was too horrible of a thing for him to deal with now.

"Do you want to go to my room?" Draco asked suddenly.

"Right now? But your mother—"

"Let's go," he said, standing up and pulling Hermione with him. "She'll be fine."

* * *

Damn, I just realized that I was talking about a Quidditch shop in the last chapter and I called it a joke shop. Urgh. For those of you who've already read that chapter before I made the change (yes, it's been changed), it is now a Quidditch shop in which Draco and Harry had their confrontation. So sorry…

I've also heard that in HBP Blaise is given a gender; is this true? Oh wait, it is, never mind…Anyway, if there's something in this story that doesn't agree with the latest book, though I'd rather not know who dies yet, feel free to let me know. I can't say that I'll change anything, but at least I can label the story AU if necessary.

And for **princesstiggeroe** (who asked a while ago how many chapters would be left to this story) and anyone else who's curious, I think I can safely say that in two or three chapters, it will all be over. Yeah, I didn't even realize it until I wrote this chapter. It just snuck up on me.

Well, until next time (and don't forget to review)…

coldlove


	29. Countdown

**ILoveMyDraco**: It depends on what he's telling her. I personally think that if Draco told her he was going to be a Death Eater, she would drop him like a hot rock, and he doesn't want that. Muggle-hating is some serious business…Also, I see this as more of Draco's decision. We all know that there are plenty of ways for him to escape, but he doesn't see them, and so for him the only choice is to just do what his father tells him. I don't like it either…

By the way, have you read HBP? I think there's some hope for canon Draco…

**Arime Setta**: I agree.

**Chewy L.**: A million times thank you. Can you guess what I'm going to say next chapter?

**Soofija**: Thank you…and you can review as much or as little as you want, as long as you keep reading.

**Sweetypi**: Sequel? Hmmm…

As for other fics, check my profile. I don't think I've got too many favorites there, and I don't really like reading stories that aren't finished, but if you don't mind then here are a few more:

Bookworm and the Beast 1934311 by JustRaeInc

Redemption 1972039 by patagonia

Saving Prefect Granger 1474185 by Harmonic Friction

Sunday Night Sex Talk 1704305 by Priah

The God of the Lost 1352741 by Gravidy (absolutely awesome story, though it's not finished. Make sure you read her other stories; they're amazing too. Follow the link to to read them in their entirety (hehe).)

**NorthStar2005**: I read HBP a few days ago…urgh. I'll say more on that later.

**SoDaPoP:** Thank you. AU means alternate universe, which basically means that the events in this story can't have possibly happened in the actual Harry Potter universe (if you've read the latest book you'll understand why).

**casacrazy**: Thank you. And I will. But now that Rowling's gone and made the world all unhappy…well, they certainly won't be as light-hearted as this one.

**zurkie**: Thanks. And slowly they will go.

**Harrison J. Pecans**: I almost made you cry? Yes! (Just kidding.) I love a romantic Draco…Also, I really like your name…:)

And thanks to** InsanePunkSra**, **bbysail28**, **EquestrianBabe**, **anon**, **nightmistrie**, **SalemWitch**, **maddudewalking**, **ffyuna**, **padfootedmoony**, **HiraTsubasa**, **Lizzle87**, **Captain-Ammie**, R**emusluver**, **FeLiCiTy RoXx**, **Buffy-CrazyaboutAngel**, **Moonglitter2**, and **eventers club** for reviewing.

* * *

**Countdown**

A week had passed since the day of Lucius' visit, and Draco was lying in bed with Hermione, who was sleeping beside him. Outside his window the sun was beginning to rise. He hugged the sleeping form next to him close to his chest, and sighed. As happy as he should have been with Hermione by his side, Draco was everything but that. The night of passion that had resulted from Lucius' visit had been wonderful in every definition of the word, but with the morning that followed the reality of his situation was forced once more upon him. He was going to become a Death Eater. If he didn't want to lose his life, he would have to endure the Dark Mark and rape and torture and murder and support Voldemort in his attempt to take over both the Muggle and magical worlds. Draco was sure Lucius would kill his only son before letting him defect from service to the Dark Lord.

And that meant…that the beautiful Muggle-born girl next to him was not his to keep. It was easy enough to pretend that there were no problems when she was around; just to have Hermione in his presence was enough for him. Draco would often forget that there was anything else to his world, but nothing could prevent him remembering that he would eventually have to let Hermione go. It was an inevitable thing, but if he could somehow find somewhere to go, maybe take Hermione with him if she agreed to leave with him…But how long would they reasonably last in hiding; no, that wouldn't work. She would never want to leave her life behind for him.

He'd already followed this train of thought already, and similar others, and they had taken him nowhere. Early on in the week Draco had given up the idea of escaping what he knew he must inevitably do. The worst of it was that Draco knew she would not submit to another breakup so easily. Though Hermione never mentioned it, Draco could see clearly that, having him now, she had no intentions of letting him go again—the exact way he should have felt if things were different. The way she clung to him when they were together was indication of someone who completely devoted to her lover. It was not surprising, because subconsciously Draco had known all along that keeping himself away from Hermione just wasn't going to work, and she must have known it too. And under different circumstances—life didn't have to be very different, his father would simply not be a Death Eater—Draco would have been happy with this knowledge, but instead it only made his task more difficult.

A week left. A week. Draco silently cursed the gods and considered suicide as an option, but quickly threw it away at the sight of Hermione's brown eyes focused on him. She smiled when she saw him looking back at her; he had obviously been awake for a while.

"Something on your mind?" she asked sleepily.

"Not really."

"Well, we've got to get to class soon." Hermione rolled away from him and off the bed. "Whatever it is, you can tell me later," she said as she walked towards her bathroom.

It seemed that she always knew when he was thinking about something. When she thought there was something on his mind Hermione let him know, and she was usually right.

Draco reluctantly followed her lead and left for his own bathroom. When he emerged from his room, ready for classes, Hermione was waiting for him. "I'll see you in our favorite class," she said, referring to Potions, before giving him a kiss and heading off to the Great Hall. Draco followed a few minutes after, still observant of his early cautionary tactics to avoid connection with her.

Draco spent the rest of the day in a haze of thought, as he had been doing for the past week. He felt now more than ever it was imperative that he _end the relationship_, as soon as possible, and yet Draco could not do it, perhaps in the hope of some sort of epiphany to reveal another option. More likely, and understandable, was his desire to be with Hermione as much as he could before the holidays; when they returned he was sure to never see her again—at least not in a romantic capacity.

* * *

As Draco knew for a fact, Hermione was aware that something was weighing on his mind. However, Hermione had taken a policy of waiting for him to clue her in, which she was sure he would eventually do. Hermione knew Draco to be the type that didn't like to be pushed; she always found it was easier to have him tell her the problem than to try and force it out of him—the latter being something at which she had yet to succeed. Since their relationship had magically regenerated itself, there had not been very much discussion of the issues between them. But, as Hermione's mother often told her, nothing would happen before its time. 

Hermione hoped that the adage applied not only to knowledge inside, but outside, of the relationship. She had yet to tell anyone that she and Draco were back together, and Hermione had to wonder if all this silence surrounding her relationships was a good thing. Ron and Ginny might not be so upset if she told them—when she told them, since she was going to their common room at that very moment—but Harry was another story. Harry didn't bother to hide his ongoing distaste for the Slytherin, and Hermione was sure he wouldn't be too pleased that she'd resumed her relationship with him. Luckily for Hermione, Harry was not in the tower when she arrived.

"Looking forward to vacation?" Ginny asked as Hermione sat down on a couch.

"Yes, actually," Hermione said truthfully. With just two days left before the holiday, Hermione found that instead of being saddened by the temporary separation, she was actually looking forward to what it would do for her relationship with Draco. Her hope was that when they returned he would be a little bit more open to, well, being open with her. There were still so many questions she had, about him, about their breakup—about what was going to happen when the year ended—but Hermione thought it best to focus on the moment him.

"So you're coming to the Burrow, then?" Ron asked.

"Yeah…" Hermione had had a difficult time convincing her parents to let her spend the holiday away from her home; it was yet another thing that convinced them she was going to disappear into the wizarding world and never come back.

"So, um…" Hermione began, "I thought you guys might want to know something before we left…"

"That you and Draco are back together?"

Hermione looked at Ginny in disbelief.

"You two should probably not make eyes at each other all the time," Ginny said simply.

Ron looked up from his Quidditch magazine. "I wouldn't mention it to Harry if I were you; we think he might blow a gasket if he knew," he said.

"Good, just hold off on that for a while," Hermione said. She was beginning to wonder how much her friends knew and weren't telling her.

"So why are you back together?" Ginny asked.

"I don't really know. Maybe I'll explain later, when there aren't so many people around," Hermione said.

"You know," Ron said, putting down the magazine, "I can see where Harry's concern comes from. Wait wait…I still don't like Malfoy, in case you were wondering, but I can accept this. It's just very bizarre from other people's perspectives, don't you think?"

"You've said that already," Hermione said.

"Right. That's all," Ron said, and returned to reading.

"Harry's just jealous, doesn't like the fact that the attention is elsewhere."

"Ginny…"

"It's true—oh, look, here he comes now. Probably back from skulking around the castle."

Hermione looked around. Ron's attention was elsewhere, and Ginny was currently distracting Harry, so Hermione took it as her cue to leave. She waved to Harry before leaving the Gryffindor tower, and headed back to the Heads' common room.

* * *

Draco figured he would feel like a piece of crap no matter what he did, so spending one more night with Hermione wasn't going to change the outcome very much. He was waiting for her on the couch when she returned to the common room. If she were surprised to see him looking at her the way he did, she didn't show it. Hermione came to him immediately; and then they were kissing and Draco was pulling her shirt up and off and taking her to her room. He didn't say anything and was almost afraid to open his mouth and do anything but taste her, because somehow he imagined the truth would spill out and then everything would be worse than it already was. But at least he could give her the best he had on this last night, and himself something to remember as he continued with the rest of his life. 

Draco moved slowly, so that he could memorize every part of the beautiful girl underneath him. She let him remove her clothes slowly, so slowly it seemed as if he were somehow afraid. And then Draco kneeled above her and watched her watch him as he threw his clothing away and finally touched her. He made sure to run his hands over every part of her, just to remember how her body felt, and to hold her to him as closely as possible in all of her wonderful heat. Hours after they were both too exhausted to move, Draco still held her in his arms, and listened to the faint steady breaths that escaped her lips. Even if he'd truly wanted to, he couldn't have kept himself away, but now his time—their time—was up, and so he detached her arms from around his torso and rose from the bed, leaving Hermione to sleep until the next day.

* * *

Right. So I've passed the hundred mark for reviews…yay! Thank you guys so much for reviewing this…story. I suppose there isn't much more to say. Sorry about taking so long to update and for the shortness of this chapter, but that can be explained. 

I read HBP a few days ago, and let me say (I'm not sure if there's anyone reading this who hasn't read the sixth book yet, so I won't go into detail), I have been traumatized. Had I been a slightly more emotional person, I would have cried. Needless to say, to those who've read it, there's at least one character in this story who is DEAD, and two who have currently unknown whereabouts (according to Harry Potter's knowledge).

Most importantly, the overall tone of the story is no longer a hopeful one. Not even close. And while we all knew it was bound to be a rather dark tale, at least…Oh gods, I can't continue. Why did she have to kill that character? Really, it was unnecessary.

Yeah, so it's been a bit difficult for me to continue writing, knowing all these things. But, I have, because this story is for you guys, and I've also figured out how to get away with making this relationship legitimate. But I won't give that away just yet…

Also, many people may be ready to kill me because Draco is headed for you-know-what. I have to say, don't be angry. You know his heart isn't in it (yes, HBP…). And well…argh, next chapter, all will be explained.

Expect that next chapter in a day or two (and you can whip me if I don't stick to that). And if there's anyone reading this story who doesn't want me to give away HBP details, let me know before the next chapter, which probably won't come before tomorrow, because I'm feeling ready to talk about it.

coldlove


	30. The End?

**GremlinTownIdiot**: Ha. I like your name. And I'm also glad you like it.

I know you said not to ask, but what does 'Friggen ma se hare' mean?

**Nattie88**: Oooh, I do the same thing…

**Soofija**: Hrmm. Draco is a stubborn guy, that's all I have to say. And of course he does…

**miss kris**: So you expected that to happen? Wow, I didn't. I think Rowling is unnecessarily cruel. About this Draco, well…sorry.

**SalemWitch**, **HiraTsubasa**::bows head in shame: Sorry about that.

**Sam**: Man, you flatter me.

**LillDevil**: You flatter me too.

**Maddudewalking**: He's getting it.

**Badgurl13a**: Well, ok; just don't read the spoiler section I've got at the end.

**Harrison J. Pecans**: Well, I'm thinking there may be a way that I don't have to mention certain elements of HBP…

**Liz**: You may get your wish.

**Captain-Ammie**: Thank you. I'm confused; 1337?

**eventers club**: Heheh. Well, I would, but there are a few other people who don't want it spoiled…perhaps you can convince him to look at the last section in my notes?

And thanks to **rat-gal2000**, **gopher2806**, **Weaselbee**,** lissag**, **dracosgal769**, **padfootedmoony**, **Arime Setta**, **NorthStar2005**, **Pippin1177**, **FeLiCiTy RoXx**, and **Moonglitter2** for reviews.

So, um, this is the last chapter of the story…

* * *

**The End?**

The first thing Hermione noticed upon waking was the lack of warmth at her side. Draco was usually up before her, but he would stay in bed until she awoke. Slightly dismayed but never one to wait, Hermione rolled out of bed and left her room. She entered the common room to find that Draco was heading towards the exit.

"Hey, can you wait for a few minutes?" she asked him. Draco didn't seem to have noticed her appearance in the room.

"I was actually planning on leaving now..." he said, not breaking his stride towards the portrait.

"Is there something wrong?" Hermione asked him.

"Not at all."

He hadn't even spared her a glance before the door closed behind him. In spite of that feeble attempt to convince her otherwise, there was obviously something wrong. Usually his mood swings were the signal that she should pay him some attention. Hermione had to wonder at this behavior, though; this was definitely something different. She couldn't think of a time when he'd deliberately refused to acknowledge her. But of course, the shower and her schedule beckoned, and Draco had already left the dormitory, so there was no way to figure out what was irking him until later. Hermione hoped that whatever it was, it wasn't somehow going to have a negative effect on their vacation.

* * *

Draco had experienced the entire spectrum of emotion that week; happiness when Hermione was with him; sadness in recalling that his happiness would be over in a few more days; anger at seeing how Potter and the rest of her friends so obviously fawned over her; smug satisfaction in knowing that in spite of them, he had been the only person to ever get truly close to her; and then ultimately despair because he was acutely aware that in a fast-approaching moment he would be losing the only piece of his life still his to control.

But for the moment all he felt was sick. It had not been a complex or difficult thing to ignore Hermione that morning, but it had left him with the feeling that a coiled snake was nestled in the pit of his stomach. And to know that he would have to do more of the same…surely the feeling would only increase.

Unfortunately the moment had already come. Where had the day gone? It was already after hours, and he couldn't put it off anymore, especially not when Hermione had been waiting for him to come back to their common room. She was sitting rather rigidly on a couch and didn't look upset, just perplexed.

"What's wrong this time?" Hermione asked. Her arms and legs were crossed, Draco noticed, so perhaps she was a little angry at him—not that it would matter in a few minutes.

"Honestly…"

If Draco kept his eyes focused on her there was the very likely chance that he wouldn't be able to continue. But she was just as likely to realize that he was lying if he turned away. With not a bit of effort Draco held her gaze and continued.

"I wasn't sure how to let you know without all the crying, but…this isn't going to work out," he finished simply.

Sarcasm. Yes, sarcasm was best.

Hermione's face scrunched up, and she seemed to be considering his words. "So you're trying to break up with me again?" It was more of a statement than a question.

"Pretty much."

Draco glanced towards his staircase. If he was lucky, she would let him go without any more elaboration. However, Hermione seemed to sense his eagerness to exit the situation.

"And you think I'm just going to accept that?" Hermione asked. She still hadn't adjusted her positioning on the couch.

"Well…what else do you think I should say?"

Hermione simply stared at him as if in disbelief of what she'd just heard. And with good reason, Draco thought; he was more surprised than her that he'd managed even those few sentences.

Hermione seemed to have come to a decision, though she didn't look completely sure of herself. "Stop joking, Draco," she said. "This isn't funny."

"You think this is a joke?" Draco asked, stepping towards her. Yes, be intimidating. "Let me assure you, it's not."

More silence, in which she seemed to be studying his face and beginning to lose her composure.

"We can't just keep breaking up and getting back together, Draco."

"We won't."

"Why?"

_Because there's a very likely chance that one or both of us would die if we were really together_, Draco thought.

"Well, I don't see why we would get back—"

"No. Why are you doing this again?"

Draco wanted to pretend that he didn't know what Hermione was talking about. Unfortunately he remembered every moment of their past with perfect clarity. Never, in the time since he'd made this decision, had he been sorrier to have wasted those few weeks deluding himself. But once again, his mouth was betraying his heart. Draco would've been proud of his ingenuity had he been using it on someone else—anyone else but the girl sitting in front of him.

"Well, I don't really expect you to understand…but you know relationships aren't my thing. I like to be on my own, you know?"

"But then why…you said it was a mistake…"

"Oh yes, that…you've got to admit the sex has been pretty good." He attempted to smirk, but it failed miserably. Though it didn't matter because Hermione's hands were covering her eyes and the rest of her face. She was beginning to cry, and making a half-hearted attempt to both cover her tears and wipe them away.

At that point Draco could feel his resolve slowly crumbling away. Why did she have to cry, she was only making it harder for them both…

"This isn't worth crying over—I'm not worth crying over, really."

It was all he could think of to say, and still it was true. He was a bastard for doing this, Draco realized.

Hermione stopped rubbing her face to look up at him, but said nothing.

"Don't cry, really," Draco repeated, kneeling in front of her.

In forming his shoddy plan to break up with, Draco had not anticipated that there would be tears. Their last breakup had shown him that Hermione was not going to fall apart that easily. Draco had only joked about her crying in the hope of making her angry, to speed the process along. He realized then that he couldn't bear to see her cry, and it was worse to watch knowing that he was the cause of it.

Draco reached up to wipe away the tears that were now running freely down her face, and leaned in to kiss her. He could taste the salt of her tears as he let his tongue trail along her lips. He really couldn't keep himself away from her, Draco realized. Not even when his mind was screaming at him that time was up, that he was ruining everything and making it harder on the both of them. But his heart rejoiced in this failure, and that was all that mattered. And then Hermione punched him in the stomach, seemingly with all the force she could muster. Draco gasped and groaned in pain, clutching his torso and falling sideways when she pushed him away.

"Don't you ever touch me again, you bastard!"

She left the room quickly, and Draco kept his eyes closed because he didn't want to see her go. How long he stayed there and waited for the slight pain to recede Draco would never know. Eventually he picked himself up and slowly walked to his room, all the while telling himself that he should be happy, that he had succeeded. But no, he shouldn't be happy, not when his happiness was with Hermione. His happiness had been effectively destroyed.

* * *

It was done. Somehow he had succeeded in doing the very thing that was just as likely to be his death as the Killing Curse. Needless to say, this was not going to be a happy Christmas for Draco. At least he wouldn't have to endure the ignominy of seeing his father at the station. Draco awoke that last day—the beginning of the vacation and what the rest of his life had in store for him—with a mixture of sadness and resignation in his stomach. At the least, the very least, he had done what he was supposed to.

It was cruelly fitting that he did not see Hermione until he had settled into a comfortable state of self-denial. Draco's thoughts were in a haze; he replayed the scenes of the previous night in his head in an attempt to distance himself from them. Understandably, he did not expect to see the real Hermione walking along the side of the Hogwarts Express towards him. But when he did Draco almost stopped in his position; she noticed him too and blanched, then averted her gaze and continued walking. Draco had almost completed the idea of saying something to her when he realized who was at her side, currently smacking into his shoulder—Harry Potter.

"What the—"

The cage Harry was holding flew out of his grip and clattered to the floor. The owl inside let out a loud angry screech and Harry hurried over to right the cage, picking it up and drawing his wand at the same time.

"I think there's enough time for a duel, don't you, Mal—"

"Don't bother Harry; he's not worth it."

Hermione tugged at his arm, and Harry lowered his wand. He glared at Draco for a moment before continuing down the platform after Hermione and the Weasleys, who had suddenly appeared on the scene. Hermione did not give him a second glance, and Draco was not going to stand there and follow her with his eyes, in spite of how badly he wanted to; not when there were other people around to notice. He was not going to linger on something that was now non-existent. Hermione had let go of whatever had been between them, and even so, it was at that moment that he knew he loved her.

* * *

:lets out long-withheld evil laugh:

There will be a sequel. Expect the next chapter about mid-week.

There was a reviewer who gave me this idea (before the story was first deleted), and I am shamelessly using it. **cherbi161**, thank you very, very much :)

So, to all you guys reviewing, I would like to say once again, how thankful I am for the reviews you send in. Arguably the best part of my day is reading what you say to me. And while I don't completely agree with those of you who say this, I can't help but blush when someone says that my writing is amazing and this story is the best you've read. That really is the greatest of compliments.

One reason for this sequel is so that I can separate this part of the story from what will follow, and write a bit differently. Also, it might be interesting to see what I can do to the characters away from the Hogwarts setting. And then there's the whole HBP business, which reminds me…

Yes, that's all I have to say to you who haven't read the sixth book. Until next time.

**Beginning of HBP Spoiler Section**: (**DO NOT CONTINUE IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE SIXTH BOOK**)

Also there's a lot of theorizing that might bore you, so there's another reason not to read…

So, like I said, it was quite the shocker. I'm not sure if I think Snape is evil. I like to think, because I had so much faith in Dumbledore's character, that he wasn't misguided in trusting Snape, but I don't know if I can. My theory for what happened is that Snape told Dumbledore about the Unbreakable Vow (which apparently meant that if Draco couldn't kill Dumbledore, then Snape would have to do it), but I doubt Dumbledore would have been happy about it; or maybe Snape did not. In any case, when Snape reached the Astronomy Tower with Draco and Harry and Dumbledore and all the other Death Eaters there was no other choice for him but to do it—especially when he was surrounded by a gaggle of Dark Lord supporters, who most likely would've killed him, and maybe Draco, and most definitely Dumbledore had he not. And if he hadn't killed Dumbledore then, both he and Draco would have lost the chance to do it, and then Snape would have died himself (though I'm not sure how the Vow would have worked in that case).

My question is whether or not Snape is protected from Voldemort when Hogwarts is not in session. We saw that he resided in a building that was not Hogwarts before the school year began (where he made that stupid Vow in the first place…). So I would think not, if he was going to keep up the appearance of being a loyal Death Eater. You know, freedom from the castle to do the Dark Lord's bidding. And so Dumbledore had to let him do it, if he wanted a good spy into Voldemort's plans, right?

But back to my theory :) Even if Snape is on the Light side, he's definitely not completely faultless. Harry catches up with him just before Snape Apparates away, and calls him a coward, and of course Snape gets all angry and overly defensive and nearly kills him (but doesn't, which makes me wonder more…). Snape says that he's not, which of course means that he is. According to the Vow, Snape would have died had he not killed Dumbledore. But surely Dumbledore would have been more of an asset to Harry's fight against Voldemort than Snape—something which Snape himself was probably well-aware of. But instead of giving up his life for the cause, he goes and kills Dumbledore. Cowardly.

I still think Snape supports the Light side (excuse my Star Wars references), since he could've killed Harry multiple times, especially after he killed Dumbledore, but he simply deflects Harry's spells. Also, we don't know where he Apparated off to. I've also been rereading the section where Snape teaches them DADA, checking out his lingo and whatnot; perhaps he is trying to improve Harry's chances against Voldemort? Or am I trying to prove something that's unquestionably false…? Also, anyone think there may be a little Cissy interest on Snape's part? Can't prove it, but the Vow…that's some serious stuff, man.

Still, I'm with Harry on this one. It would be fitting for him to off Snape after all the trouble he's caused. And I'd also like to shake a fist at Rowling. I loved Dumbledore's character…

As for canon Draco, well…being the shipper I am, I've got to hope. He didn't kill Dumbledore (and I'm hoping Rowling doesn't off him), and he only attempted it to protect himself and his family. He's a little better off in my book.

So, what do you guys think?

coldlove


	31. Updates and New Stories

**Updates and New Stories**

Right, so I know we're not supposed to post chapters that are only notes, but um, don't report me. I think there might have been a little confusion after my last author's note. This story is done, but _the_ _new story_ is entitled 'Similar Causes and Effects' (very different, of course). So head on over to my profile page or just search for that title. Either way, expect a new story. And there will be replies to your comments…

coldlove


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